


Dare Me

by Merawlee



Series: The Wrecker Files [1]
Category: Call of Duty (Video Games)
Genre: Canon-Typical Violence, Complicated Relationships, Explicit Language, F/M, Flirting, Haunted Houses, Horror, Original Character(s), POV Multiple, POV Third Person Limited, Sexual Tension, Truth or Dare
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-25
Updated: 2019-05-23
Packaged: 2019-09-26 11:01:33
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 10
Words: 33,929
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17140571
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Merawlee/pseuds/Merawlee
Summary: Place: Zapata National Park, CubaYear: 2027On their way to the Cayman Islands to gather intel on the turncoat Rorke, Hesh and Wrecker got hit by a rogue storm and they got hit hard. As if surviving a crash was not bad enough, they were now lost in Federation territory with no way to get out.Would they brave the night in the swamp where enemies were the least of their worries?Dare or dare not…





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

  * For [JaneWeller](https://archiveofourown.org/users/JaneWeller/gifts).



>   
> Merry Christmas, darling!  
>   
> I'm so good at belated things, I swear! This is our, Jane and I, informal Halloween Exchange that then became a Spooky "Christmas" thing and it's still not finished! xD But we promised each others to post what we had so far for Christmas so here is the first few chapters of this Spooky CoD: Ghosts story.  
>   
> Though meant for Halloween, the action does not take place during that time of the year.  
>   
> The Prologue is really just a summary of the game's storyline, its settings and so on and is meant for those who don't know much about this FPS game. (Come on, let's be honest! It's a great game all thanks to Riley! Riley makes the game, really!)  
>   
> The story is set right after _Federation Day_ and before _Birds of Prey_ but, for the purpose of this story, more than a few days will separate those two missions unlike the game.  
>   
> This work has not had a beta and though I strive my best to catch every mistakes, some might still slip by me so I will apologise in advance for any errors one may find.

### Prologue : Briefing For Recruits

  


  
_“It was a different time, a different enemy. Sixty men, from Tier One teams, were sent to face down a force of five hundred enemy fighters. Their objective: To force the enemy back from a civilian hospital, and keep its occupants alive. For three days, they held their ground, but the enemy's numbers were too great. The sixty were cut down to fifteen. They wouldn't last another night, and the enemy knew it. Under the cover of darkness, they evacuated the hospital, sending only one of their own to lead the way. The rest returned to the line, and took up position beneath the bodies of their fallen brothers. As they lay and wait, the blood from the dead poured over them. The sand stuck to their skin like a shroud. Changing them. Anointing them. When the enemy drew near, the remaining fourteen rose out of the desert sand. They were like hunters that couldn't be seen, using stealth their enemies couldn't defend against. When the men ran dry of ammunition, they used their blades, and when the blades ran dull, they used their hands. When the dust and sand had settled, only one of the enemy had survived. He was picked up in the desert, wandering aimlessly, traumatised. He expressed warnings to others of a force so menacing and unbeatable, it could only be described as supernatural. He called them... ‘_ Ghosts _’.”_ — Elias “Scarecrow” Walker.  
  
The time was early 21st century. The Tel-Aviv war raged through the Middle East until the entire region was devastated, the countries caught in it collapsing. No one could have predicted the ensuing global energy crisis that crippled First World nations so dependant on Middle Eastern oil or the budding threat of a new power that rose from such a crisis.

By mid-2014, Venezuela, Brazil, and Chile united to form the _Federacion de las Américas_. Their objective: to monopolise their own oil-rich resources and consolidate power over the neighbouring countries. With severe anti-American rhetorics, the Federation expanded throughout the rest of South America while its General, Diego Almagro, called for the arrest and execution of every U.S natives found within the Federation’s territory.

The United States of America answered such violence to its citizens by sending the Ghosts on a mission to assassinate Almagro in mid-2015. However, despite the elite military unit’s success, the Federation flourished economically and continued its aggressive invasion in the following years, conquering all of Central America and the Caribbean.

Their hold firm on two thirds of the Americas, it turned its attention to North America.

By 2017, in an effort to protect its country against an invasion from the Federation’s army, the United States deployed the Orbital Defense Initiative, otherwise known as ODIN. However, the Federation smuggled a strike teak in a routine supply shuttle. They hijacked ODIN and were able to decimate most of the South and Southwest, notably Southern California, Nevada, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, and Louisiana, before being stopped. The Federation used the devastating blow to the U.S to start a massive land invasion upon their northern enemy.  
  
10 years later, the war between the two superpowers had come to a standstill…


	2. Chapter 2

### Chapter One : Hot Bird

  


_NAS Key West, Florida, United States of America_

_June 16th 2027, 1400 EDT_  
  
The Blackhawk touched down on the heliport, its large rotor blades rhythmically slicing the hot Floridian air. His hand tightly holding the heavy black metallic case, David “Hesh” Walker jumped down from the helicopter, his body instinctively ducking until he was a few paces away from it.

He looked around, trying to find his bearings but the blazing afternoon sun beating down on the tarmac blinded him. It did not help that he had never set foot on the naval air base before. They had been stationed at Fort Santa Monica in California before the Federation had launched an attack upon it forcing them to evacuate.

“The command centre is that way,” Keegan said walking past him. Despite being on the base, the man still kept his mask firmly on, the soldiers they walked past looking at him. Whispers of ‘Ghosts’ followed them.

Technically, he and his brother Logan where not part of that elite unit. At least not yet though David fervently hoped it would soon change especially since their last mission had been a success. Well somewhat of a success. But it would be if they could decrypt the information inside the case he was carrying.

He closely followed Keegan, glad to get out from under the harsh sunlight, only to almost collide with the man when this one came to a dead stop in front of an opened door. He wondered what was wrong until he heard a crashing sound.

“How the fuck can you lose a team?” he heard the unmistakable growling voice of yet another Ghost, Thomas Merrick also known as Stalker-Six and their Field Commander. To say the man was pissed was an understatement.

“Stand down, Stalker!” Elias Walker, his father, Commanding Officer and also a Ghost, hissed in a dangerously low voice. “Moreno’s one of the best helicopter pilots we have. I’m sure there’s a reason behind the communication silence.”

“Communication silence my ass, Elias! How long since the team’s last check-in?”

“I don’t see—”

“HOW LONG?”

“Seven days, Merrick. The team’s last check-in was seven days ago.”

The two men were facing one another while the other people present seemingly tried their best to be as unobtrusive as possible. He could not blame them in the least. The last thing he would ever want is to be standing beside two furious Ghosts, especially Merrick.

David knew his father well enough to realise that, despite his obvious anger, this one was nevertheless worried. He wondered who Moreno was. He had to be another Ghost. It made sense his father was worried. After all, there had been only fourteen of them and many had been killed, most by the very man they were now trying desperately to find.

“You’ve lost contact with Moreno and Neptune for that long and didn’t see fit to let us know?” Keegan asked making the two men inside turn to look at them.

“I didn’t think you guys needed to know until I was sure something was wrong,” his father explained. “I can’t afford to have you distracted while on missions.” Merrick viciously swore and for a moment David was sure the man was going to attack his father but a sharp hiss from Keegan made him stop.

“Ajax’s death hurt us badly but if the Federation got its hand on Moreno, I’ll fucking hijack a helicopter, learn to fucking pilot it, and go kill as many of the fuckers as I can!” the man snarled, Merrick nodding in agreement. Moreno had to be a great Ghost to have such loyalty.

“If it comes to that, I’ll help. Hell, I’ll even come with,” his father said. “All I’m asking is to wait a bit before going crazy. I sent our change of coordinates through our satcom. Hopefully, it has not been cracked by the Federation but even if it was, Moreno is damn resourceful as you both more than know.”

It was a clear dismissal of the subject if ever there was one. Merrick stormed out of the room obviously still pissed while Keegan simply crossed his arms over his chest, his skull mask hiding his facial expression though the barely contained anger was easily discernible in his blue eyes. The man would have probably followed his brother-in-arms but they had to debrief their mission.

“I hope you were able to get information out of Ramos.”

“Yes and no,” David said putting the black case on the nearest table. “It was a setup. Rorke knew we would hit Ramos for information. He blew the damn building up. We barely escaped.”

With a curse, his father raked his fingers through his short salt-and-pepper hair before taking a deep calming breath. He did not blame him. Fighting the Federation was already bad but it was a walk in the park compared to having to go against an ex-Ghost, one who had been their captain, the man his father had abandoned and thought dead back in Caracas during their mission to assassinate General Almagro all those years ago only to recently discover him fighting for the Federation and targeting Ghosts.

“Still, we were able to make Ramos tell us that Rorke’s locations are kept on encrypted files,” he quickly added. “I grabbed the case containing them before escaping.”

“Well done, son, well done indeed all of you.” His father opened the case. Inside was a digital keyboard and a screen. “What do you make of this, Keegan?” David shifted slightly forward to have a closer look at the screen. He could barely decipher some words here and there. It was obviously written in Spanish. At least, he thought that was the language used.

“I’d say it was written by a rat high on some sort of opioid,” Keegan grumbled. “I understand most of the words but they actually mean nothing. It’s obviously encrypted. I may be good at Spanish but Moreno would be the best person to ask. Oh, that’s right! We fucking lost contact!”

“Keegan—,” his father started to say but was interrupted.

“Sir! We’ve got something on the radar!” one of the soldiers assigned to communications shouted. After the attack at Fort Santa Monica, no one was taking any chances.

“Can you identify it?

“It’s a chopper, sir, but it’s not answering our request for identification.”

“Does it fly alone?” his father asked.

“Nothing else but it on the radar, sir,” the soldier replied. His father grabbed a headphone.

“This is NAS Key West. Identify yourself! Este es el NAS Key West. Identifícate!”

No answer.

“Should I send the order to shoot it down, sir?” His father gazed at the radar with a frown. “Sir? Should I send the order?”

“Keegan, go out on the view deck and pinpoint the helicopter’s location with your long range scope. Let me know what you see.” David looked at Logan but this one merely shrugged his shoulders as their father turned to the comms station once more.

“Definitely a chopper,” the Ghost called out. “Smokes coming out of it. It’s a Federation bird.”

“This is the NAS Key west. Identity yourself!” his father barked in the microphone. He repeated the same in Spanish but still received no answer. “Come on! If it’s you give us a damn sign!”

“Well fuck me! It _is_ Moreno!” they all heard Keegan shout from the view deck. “No one else would be that crazy to bank at 90 degree with a chopper in that state!”

“We’ve got one of our birds coming in hot and fast and without way to communicate with us. Evacuate a space on the heliport and have a medic unit on standby,” his father said to the communications operator. He seemed much too calm for what David could only imagine was a dire situation. “Oh and one of you go get Merrick. He’s about the only one who’ll survive telling Moreno about Ajax’s death. Still ready a body bag just in case.”

He volunteered to get the man if only to meet this Moreno.

“Hesh!” Keegan called out when he turned towards the door. “A bit of advice. Mind how you look at Moreno unless you want Merrick to rip your flesh out and wear it like a coat.” His steps faltered at the doorway. The guy was pulling his leg, nothing more. He was most probably having a good laugh at the new guy. Yes, nothing more than a joke. At least he sincerely hoped so as he went looking for the man.

He did not have to search far since he almost collided with his Field Commander the moment he stepped out of command centre.

“Get out of my fucking way,” Merrick growled before David could utter one little sound. “I’m going to kill someone for this clusterfuck mess!” It seemed the man was still pissed and since he knew how lethal he was from their mission in No Man’s Land, he thought it best to follow him from a few paces back. No need to give the Ghost a target for his murderous tendencies.

The base was well organised, a firetruck and medical crew already on site, as well as military police, these ones getting a dark look from his companion.

“Simple precaution, sir!” one of them said clearly uncomfortable with how Merrick’s hand went to rest on his Remington R5. David stepped forward to defuse the volatile situation but the sound of the incoming helicopter made them all look up, the firemen shouting in dismay before rushing to get ready. There were flames coming from one side of the cockpit.

He did not know how the pilot was able to land in such conditions. Still, it did though the helicopter’s descend speed was such that the landing skids heavily crashed on the ground, shattering on impact. The fire crew was already busy dousing the cockpit with water.

The side door was kicked open from the inside, a tall beefy man wearing an unmistakable Ghost mask jumping down. It had to be the infamous Moreno, the man having obviously decided to get out from the back due to the thick smoke in the cockpit.“We’ve got wounded here!” he shouted, the medical crew rushing to help him bring out injured soldiers. “Merrick! I can’t get into the cockpit from back here! Get Moreno the fuck out of there now!” The man did not have to repeat himself, Merrick already busy trying to open the battered side cockpit window while the sole of a booted foot could be seen through the thick smoke trying to smash the glass from the inside.

“Fucking shit! Hesh, help me out!” Still, no matter what they tried, it would just not budge, the man growing almost frantic. “To hell with this shit!” the man raged taking his assault rifle. “I’m going to smash the window, try to protect yourself any way you can, sweetheart! I’m getting you out of this tin can one way or another!” he shouted.

Sweetheart?! Was Merrick gay? Had that been what Keegan had referred to about minding how he looked at Moreno? David honestly did not mind. Whatever his companions did in their private lives were their own business and none of his.

With a yell, the man repeatedly smashed the pilot-side window with the butt of his Remington R5 until it finally shattered, thick black smoke pouring out from it. Merrick reached inside and pulled someone out, a slim man, his face hidden underneath an odd skull-less black mask. It was the first time David saw a Ghost without the unique skull design each members of the elite unit sported.

“We need a medic here!” he yelled while closely following Merrick who was rushing away from the helicopter, Moreno held in his arms, until they were far enough from the still smoking wreckage. One man from the medical crew quickly came to where they were. Moreno tried to say something but coughed hard enough to spit a lung.

“Now don’t you start refusing medical attention or I swear I’ll tie you up!” Merrick barked with a growl, one that was answered by the small man.

“Don’t you fucking threaten me, Thomas Merrick! I’m not in the mood so cállate, carajo!” this one said in a hoarse voice while ripping the mask off his head, long dark brown hair falling down past the slim shoulders.

Moreno was actually a woman, a soot-covered and very pissed off woman.  
  
Sonia Moreno speared Merrick with a wrathful look but the obtuse man completely disregarded it as he did her threats of bodily harm should he continue to fuss over her. There was nothing she hated more than feeling helpless. Still, her lungs burned and felt as if not enough air flowed through them so she let the medic put an oxygen mask over her lower face.

It had been too close, much too close even for her. She had never felt so afraid as that very moment when she had been flying almost blind due to the smoke and then the fire, the crash landing, not being able to kick the window out, unable to breathe. Just thinking of it made her body almost convulse as deep painful coughs wracked through her. Merrick gave her a worried look. She more than remembered the last time he had had such a look. It was a time she desperately tried to forget.

“We should bring her to the hospital so we can monitor her vital signs,” the medic said but that made her snarl behind the oxygen mask. She hated hospitals ever since waking up in one a few years ago with the American Military Police standing guard over her. She had shown herself to be trustworthy but with how bad the tensions between the United States of America and the Federation were, she was not altogether sure she could trust anyone other than the Ghosts—

Her eyebrows drew down into a frown as she looked around or, at least, tried to held as she still was in Merrick’s arms. Something was amiss. She pushed the oxygen mask off.

“Where’s Ajax?” she asked having to force the words through her painful throat, her voice so husky she wondered if she had had a sex operation during the hellish flight. The damn man’s eyes avoided contact with her. “Thomas, where’s Ajax?” she repeated trying to push his arms away but he was harder to budge than a damn mountain.

“Let’s get you looked at by a doctor first and then—”

“Fuck that! I want to know where Ajax is!” She painfully coughed, an unpleasant taste flowing in her mouth. “If he was on a mission you’d have told me so I know he isn’t,” she added. “You and I both know he’s never missed welcoming me back from a mission.”

“Sweetheart—” Merrick whispered. Her fist connected with his jaw before he ever had time to react. Unfortunately, she had not been able to put much power behind it. It barely made him blink.

“Don’t ‘sweetheart’ me, Thomas Merrick! I will not—” The bastard effectively made her shut up by snapping the oxygen mask back over her mouth and nose.

“No you’ll shut up for once and listen, girl!” he barked not caring that everyone in the vicinity turned to watch them, Neptune, the Ghost who had been with her during the mission, shaking his head in defeat. Their bickering was, after all, a thing of legend. Still, there was no one Sonia trusted more with her very life than Merrick. The only other American who could boast to have such a trust was Ajax.

She turned her focus back to Merrick intent on out-barking him, something she knew she was well able to despite how raw her lungs felt, but he simply did not give her another opportunity to get a word in.

“You and Neptune left on a recon mission aboard a much different helicopter as the piece of shit you came back in.” She parted her lips behind the oxygen mask but he sharply raised a hand. “A fucking mission that shouldn’t have taken two weeks to do! One where you were supposed to remain in _constant contact_! Do you fucking know how fucking worried I was when Elias finally admitted he had had no words from you for a week? A fucking week, Sonia! For all we knew, you had been captured by the Federation!”

That completely deflated her anger. She could well imagine what would happen to her should the Federation ever capture her, death not being part of the equation. They did not take kindly to traitors or those who defected to the other side. Sonia was both in their eyes.

She resisted the urge to trace the puckered scar that ran from the side of her left ear and curved down to below her jawline. Even after all that time, she still felt the pain of the knife slicing her skin. She saw his gaze turn to look at that physical reminder of what the Federation was capable of. She once more took the oxygen mask off.

“What? You’re telling me it took you two fucking weeks to notice I wasn’t back? Wow! I feel so appreciated!” she said, her voice thick with sarcasm. It was a much better emotion than the fear that was trying to claw its way out of the deep recess of her mind.

He started to growl once more but before he could lash out as she knew he would, as she had hoped he would, a hand grabbed his forearm. All that time and she had not noticed someone was crouching beside them. It was a wonder she had been able to weave through Federation territory undetected so far. Then again, she was allowed to be slightly less observant than usual. After all, she had almost become roasted.

“I think bringing Moreno to the hospital is more important than chastising her,” the man said in a voice meant to pacify Merrick. As if that would work! Still, Sonia had to admit he was more than pleasing to the eyes with his short brown hair, neatly trimmed mutton chops and deep forest green eyes. There was something familiar about him. She was sure she would have remembered meeting him before.

“Yeah. I’ll do that,” Merrick almost snarled. Carefully, he got back up on his feet while still holding her in his arms. “Oh and Hesh? Don’t follow!” he added.

“But—”

“Take Neptune to Command Centre so he can brief Elias on this fucking botched mission. That’s an order, boy!”

That said, Merrick turned and briskly walked away. Looking over his shoulder, Sonia watched the one called Hesh hesitate before going to where Neptune was. If her grouchy companion was giving him orders then that meant he was a Ghost. Things sure had become interesting in the short time she had been away on mission. Perhaps too interesting. Her thoughts turned black.

“Thomas,” she whispered in a small voice. “Please tell me what happened to Ajax.” She felt more than heard his deep sigh.

“Let’s get you checked up by a doctor first and then I promise I’ll tell you everything, sweetheart.”

  


  
“Huh! Seems Merrick didn’t kill you after all. I guess you took my advice. Smart move, Hesh” David heard Keegan chuckle as he entered command centre’s debriefing room. “Hey Neptune. It’s about time you show your face around here,” this one added to the man accompanying him. A grunt was the only answer he received.

“Keegan,” his father warned before turning his attention to the towering man. “I’m relieved to have you and Moreno back safe and sound. Not many of our brothers can say the same.” Another grunt. “Still, what the fuck happened? You guys were on a recon mission! You more than know you shouldn’t have gone off radar especially when you guys are so deep in enemy territory!” Neptune crossed his arms over his large chest and shook his head in apparent defeat.

“It wasn’t a planned thing, Elias, but you know how Moreno is. ‘Fly by the seat of your pants’ takes a whole new meaning with her. During our recon, she intercepted an encrypted message. The Federation had rounded up some captured American soldiers and were planning on a big public execution. She pulled rank on me and turned our recon mission into a rescue from that moment on.” His father snorted slightly.

“So she pulled rank on you, huh!” his father chuckled. David wondered why all the Ghosts present seemed to find that comical. “Go on.”

“We cut off all communications to lower the risks of being found out, ditched the helicopter, infiltrated the compound where they held the captives, blasted our way out of it, stole a bird right from under the Federation’s nose and hightailed it out of there,” Neptune explained. “By that time, Moreno already knew Fort Santa Monica was lost and had deduced your new location.” The man stopped, his shoulders drooping slightly. “We would have been in the clear if I hadn’t made her reopen the comms. Some of the soldiers were badly wounded so I argued that it would give the medics forewarning. Elias, as soon as she did, we were targeted. I have no fucking clue how but the Federation pinpointed us the very moment we opened the comms. Fuck me, we were flying one of their birds so there’s no damn way they could have known who we were! Moreno was very careful not to be pinged.”

Dead silence settled in the command centre at the information. If what Neptune had said was true, their communications were no longer secure. They already had problems holding against the might of the Federation, now more so than before with the Ghosts being so actively hunted.

“Could this be Rorke’s doing? Could he have somehow made it so the Federation has complete access to our communications system” David asked, Neptune’s head snapping in his direction at the mention of the man’s name.

“Wait… isn’t Rorke dead? He fell back in Caracas during that fucked up assassination mission!”

“It’s what we were led to believe. By what we know, he was captured by the Federation and brainwashed. He’s now hunting us, hunting Ghosts,” his father explained. “He had captured Ajax. Merrick, Keegan and my boys were able to save him. He lived just long enough to warn us about Rorke—”

“Ajax is dead?!” Neptune asked before swearing. “Oh fucking shit! Moreno’s going to go nuclear when she learns. Do you think Merrick’s going to survive telling her?” Keegan and his father merely shrugged their shoulders. “Fuck, I can’t believe Ajax is dead. You know, I almost pity Rorke. He won’t be able to hide from Mo—”

The crash of the door being kicked opened made them all grab their weapons and turn as one towards the person standing in the doorway.

“Where?” Moreno asked, her voice cold and as deadly as a venomous snake. She was still half-covered in soot. She stomped her way inside until she stood mere inches from his father’s face who calmly stood his ground. Though he would never admit it, David would probably have cowered so palpable her wrath was. A breathing and still very much alive Merrick did nothing more than rest his shoulder against the doorjamb, his arms crossed over his chest. “Where the fuck is that pendejo Rorke?”

“We don’t know. He seems to stay one step ahead of us—” She interrupted him by making a strange clacking sound.

“I don’t give a fuck, Elias! He killed Ajax! I swear, if I have to shake the whole of the Federation, I will find him and when I do, I’ll hang him by his fucking güevas until they rip off!” He made a mental note to never piss the woman off.

“We retrieved what we think are Rorke’s coordinates. But it’s encrypted,” his father said in a neutral voice. He obviously outranked her but nevertheless talked to her as if she was an equal and not a subordinate. “Believe me as soon as we know where Rorke is, I’ll send every effectives in my disposition to bring him down.”

“Not good enough! I want to lead the air charge.” That seemed to take his father a bit by surprise, his hesitation making Moreno hiss. “This is no longer about the Federation nor is it about the Americans! It’s about Ajax! Either I’m part of it when it comes down or I do it alone!

“Well either or, nothing’ll be done until we can decrypt the information,” Keegan said. It was only when she turned to stare at this one that David noticed the thick puckered scar on the left side of her neck. The skin between his shoulder blades prickled. He did not need to turn to realise Merrick was most probably intently staring at him. Once more, Keegan’s warning flashed in his mind. It seemed their Field Commander was somewhat of a jealous man.

“Encrypted? How? If it’s a Federation encryption, I may be able to crack it. The Federation hasn’t changed much since I defected.”

This time, it was all of the Ghosts who stared at him. The fact Moreno was South American was easy enough to deduced but not the fact she had been, by her own admission, a Federation soldier. David could also guess that she was not altogether part of the U.S. Army. Still, his survival instincts were sharp enough not to make any comments about it, not when his back was facing Merrick.

“I don’t know if it’s Federation or not,” Keegan finally said though the man’s eyes were still on him. He was curious as to know why the Ghosts, his father included, seemed to be so protective of Moreno. “I mean it’s obviously in Spanish but I couldn’t make heads nor tails of it.”

He watched her go stand in front of the table where the black case he had grabbed from Caracas was all while trying his best not to ogle her butt — which was nicely rounded — too long in the advent he ended up with a knife in his back.

“I see what you mean, Keegs,” she said before making that clacking noise once more. “Some of the words seemed archaic as if they mixed up Spanish with old Mayan. It’s not an encryption I know but it’s still pretty similar to what the Federation previously used.”

“We have access to some of the best cryptologists this side of the equator but I’m sure they would work faster if they had a base to start from,” his father said, Moreno slowly nodding her head.

“Yeah. I would take the words as they are written, compared them to Mayan glyphs and their meanings and work from there, go through different variations of. In my days, the Federation loved to use that tactic but they seemed to have veered off from it,” Moreno explained before badly coughing.

“Ok, enough for today,” Merrick barked. “It’s back to the hospital for you and this time you’ll stay there until the doctors deem you fine enough.”

“Merrick’s right,” his father added, briefly grabbing her shoulder. “I promise that I won’t keep you on the side when the time comes to strike against Rorke because you’re right. This isn’t about the war, the Federation or the United States. It’s strictly about the Ghosts and we deal with our problems by ourselves! It concerns all of us and only us.”

For the first time, he and his brother Logan were included in that. They were finally Ghosts.


	3. Chapter 3

### Chapter Two : Ante Up

  


  
Truly there was nothing worst for a pilot than being grounded. For Sonia, it came very close to being hell. She had ‘convinced’ the doctors that she was hale bu they had, naturally, been sceptical in her claim to be recovered after less than twenty-four hours. She had demonstrated how fit she was by running away from the hospital. A bit of coughing never hurt anyone and she had survived much worst than that!

Her little stunt, though, had not impressed Elias in the least. So much so, he completely refused to send her on a mission, first by giving her a bullshit excuse and then, after the tenth time she requested to be sent on one, by opting to yell at her to leave him the fuck alone and to take the opportunity to fully recover.

He was deliberately keeping her on the ground! Fuck, even Neptune had been sent on another mission so it was not about recovery but keeping her out of the loop! She more than knew any sort of intel about the Federation was useful, intel she could easily glean by doing some quick recon missions. Instead, here she was, sitting at the base’s bar, knocking back beers while hissing at any soldiers who tried to chat her up.

She realised they were all waiting for the cryptologists to crack Rorke’s coordinates. She hated waiting, hated feeling helpless. She was a woman of action! She needed to be in the thick of things! If she was concentrating on something, anything then she would not think about Ajax, about how she would never again hear his deep laugh, or watch him try and bluff at poker, or have him tease her the way only he was allowed to.

She emptied the beer bottle in one swing and slammed it hard on the table with a hiss, the soldiers at the bar looking up only to turn their attention right back to their own drinks, most probably scared by how pissed she looked. Americans were so easy to scare. They all were, even the Federation. The only exception to that were the Ghosts. She owed her very life to them, especially to Merrick and Ajax. She would do everything in her power to stop that bastard Rorke! He would not kill another Ghost if she could help it!

What was she waiting for? She did not need cryptologists! She knew where to get the information she wanted! She would not sit on her ass while Ghosts were targeted! Her decision taken, she pushed her chair away from the table, got up, turned and almost collided with the person standing right behind her. Two warm hands dropped on her shoulders to steady her making her look up into forest green eyes.

“Sorry,” the man chuckled. “I didn’t know you were going to get up so suddenly.” Sonia recognised him as being the one that had been with Merrick.

“Hesh, right?” she enquired, one eyebrow slowly cocking when he made no move to take his hands off her shoulders. It seemed to take him a few heartbeats more to come to the realisation he was at the risk of having said appendages chopped off. He finally took a step back with a sheepish smile. It made him look even more attractive. He was about the same height as Merrick but more athletically build than stocky, if the army green t-shirt he was wearing was any indication. She would have been lying if she said she did not like the sight before her. Then again, it had been too long since she had sexual relief.

“Yeah though some also calls me Walker—”

“AH!” she shouted making people turn to look at them. “That’s why I thought you looked familiar! You’re one of Elias’ sons! Let me guess… David, right? Cause you look too old to be Logan.” That obviously took him by surprise.

“Yes, I’m David,” he slowly answered, his voice tinted with confusion.

“Elias talked about you guys often, that’s all. I really should have made the connection when I first saw you since you do look like him. I didn’t mean to come off as some weird chica or anything like that,” she laughed while shaking her head slightly.

“I didn’t know my dad talked about us.”

Her laughter petered out. While it was true Elias was not one inclined on sharing details on his personal life, he had done so with her as a way to gain her trust at a time when she had so little to give anyone. Still, she had never thought she would meet his sons. If she remembered correctly, the oldest Walker boy was, or had been, a U.S. Army Ranger.

An idea started take shape in her mind. It could work. She crossed her arms and slowly smirked. Ajax would have been so fucking proud!

“Tell me, David ‘Hesh’ Walker, do you play poker?”  
  
David was surprised to see Moreno alone. By what he had gathered, whenever she was not out on a mission, she was either shadowed by Merrick or Ajax. He far from minded however since it gave him an opportunity to get to know the intriguing pilot. He had to admit that she had cleaned up nicely, very nicely in fact. The soot that had covered her had hidden the beauty of her face while her clothes only accented her lush South American body. Still, the way she was smiling at him right that moment made him almost want to turn tail and run the other way.

“What soldier worth his, or _her_ , salt not know how to play poker?” he nevertheless answered. She had the smile of a cat who had swallowed a canary. Attractive if one was not said canary and something told him he unfortunately was. He could not help but remember the recent conversation he had had with his father when they had been alone.

“So! Moreno and Merrick?” he had asked.

“Yeah, what about them?”

“Are they a couple or something like that?” His father had looked at him for such a long moment David had almost started to fidget.

“I’d say the easiest way to know would be to ask either of them. Of course then you’d have to figure out if you’d prefer to die quickly or not. See, you go and ask Moreno, she’ll smile amiably, pull her gun and cap a bullet in the middle of your forehead. You ask Merrick instead, he’ll growl that it’s none of your business but then, one night you’ll wake up in a small room where Merrick’ll proceed in killing you slowly and painfully. In either cases, you’ll be dead and still won’t know the answer to your question.”

David had started to laugh but his mirth had died when his father had not join him. No, Elias Walker had looked completely serious and now, standing in front of a smirking Moreno, it was easy to imagine her pulling the trigger without any hesitation. David was curious, after all she was an attractive young woman despite the puckered scar, but not enough to risk death.

“I’ve got a pack of cards why don’t you go grab us some beer?” Moreno suggested. He turned toward the bar. “If you don’t want to play for money, we could always do strip poker,” she added making him almost walk straight into a table. Surely she was joking, right?

He made his way to the bar while hoping he was not looking as unsteady as he felt.

“Two beers,” he told the barman who was giving him a forthright wink, the soldiers sitting at the bar chuckling knowingly. David wondered if he would be able to play one full poker hand before Merrick stampeded through the bar. Why had he agreed to play cards with Moreno again? Damn her dark brown eyes and her lush South American looks! He had been celibate for far too long. Another thing he could blame the Federation for. The war they were fighting did not make it easy to hook up with girls. Naturally, the fact he liked adventurous women did not help. He liked them with a bit of fire in their veins. Moreno looked anything _but_ tame and there lay the problem. She was completely his style.

“Gracias,” she said when he put the beer bottle in front of her. “Is 5-Card Stud fine with you? It’s only us two, after all. Don’t worry, I won’t fleece you too much.”

He merely grunted in answer, trying his best to appear casual and treating her like any other soldiers though watching her hands deftly shuffle the cards made that quite difficult. Despite his best intention, his eyes moved to her chest. It was hard not to when she was wearing a tight white t-shirt. Naturally, she was not wearing any dog tags, a tiny gold cross gracing her neck instead. The puckered scar drew his gaze. David was curious but, if what his father had said was true, any curiosity concerning Moreno resulted in a clean bullet through the forehead.

“Deal me in,” he said, bringing his attention away from her chest and neck. Best he concentrated on the card game and nothing more. However, he found himself yapping instead of remaining silent. “Have you been with the Ghosts for long?” She looked up from her cards, one her of slim eyebrows cocked cynically.

“I don’t answer questions without getting nothing in return,” she told him. “And you, Hesh, have nothing to give that would interest me.”

Too bad for Moreno, Logan was the more prudent of the Walker boys.

“Well then, why not make that the winner’s prize? The one who wins the most gets to ask the other one something.”

“Ask something, huh. Are we limited only to questions or are dares on the table too?” she asked. There was a strange gleam in her dark brown eyes.

“Aren’t you afraid of what I could ask of you if I won?” He watched her slowly appraise him, the cat-that-ate-the-canary smile back on her lips.

“I never refuse a good dare, Hesh,” she whispered. The husky voice and the untold promise it held made his pants very uncomfortable. Good thing he was sitting.

“That’s something we have in common, Moreno,” he replied before taking a long sip of beer.

“Well then, this will be a very interesting poker match.” David could only silently agree with her.

  


  
Two beers and a few hands of poker later, David was confident he would end up winning their ultimate bet since he had already swept most of Moreno’s money. He was not a pro player but had found out early in the game that the woman simply could not bluff and boy did she try to. She had the most obvious of tell whenever she did which made it easy for him to win. Mainly her tongue would peek out from the corner of her lips. When it did, he knew she was bluffing.

She would probably not lose so badly if she ever folded but Moreno seemed to be an all or nothing woman. She never folded, no even once no matter how bad her hand was.

Since his victory was pretty much assured, he wondered what he could actually ask her. He wanted to get to know her better. She was, after all, quite interesting. Still this would be too good an opportunity to ask about her relationship with Merrick without risking death.

David would be lying if the thought of asking her a more intimate dare had not crossed his mind. However it was a fleeting thought. He would never force a woman into his bed in such a manner. Not only would it be a forced consent which pretty much negated it but it would probably be the fastest way to be killed, if not by Merrick’s hand, than by any other Ghosts including his father.

“I’ll raise the bet to twenty,” he heard her say. That damn tongue of hers was peaking out once again.

He briefly looked at his hand, his face remaining impassive. He had a Full House, three Kings and two Aces. He wanted to see if he could make her fold.

“I’ll see that bet and raise you everything I have left.”

“I can’t match that, Hesh.”

“So? Put up what you’ve got left or fold.”

He patiently watched her look at her cards, her tongue peaking out. How he wanted to nibble it. He moved slightly in his chair. Why were army pants so confining?

“Fine! I call your bet,” she finally said.

“Good play, Moreno, but looks like I might be the winner here,” he chuckled revealing his cards. Her gaze went from them to his face. Very slowly, her tongue disappeared, a smirk appearing on her lips.

“Gringos make it so easy,” she purred. She flipped one card after another. Three Queens and a Jack, the last card still in her hand. “I can’t believe you actually fell for that stupidly easy tell.” Her last card was another Queen. “Looks like I win.”

“Well fuck me!” he laughed with a shake of his head. “I concede defeat. You played me well.”

“I was taught by the best. No one was able to beat Ajax except me.”

“The win is yours, Moreno. So, what do you want from me?” he asked.

“Like I said, you’ve got nothing to offer me that I want. At least not information-wise. I do have a dare for you. The question is though, will you be man enough to actually go through with it?”

David had a moment of hesitation. What did Moreno have in mind? By the look in her dark brown eyes, it was not a long heated match between the sheets.

“A bet’s a bet. As long as it’s not overly against the law,” he chuckled.

“Maybe a bit of trouble but it’d be worth it,” she whispered, bending slightly forward. Once more, his eyes briefly moved to her chest. “I want you to come with me on an… unofficial mission.”

It took him a moment to actually make sense of what she was saying.

“Wait, what?”

“You heard me correctly.”

“By ‘unofficial’ you mean go above the chain of command and basically go AWOL?” Moreno clacked her tongue impatiently while hissing something in Spanish.

“No, not going so far as that. Just requisition a bird and fly into Federation territory to find information about Rorke. Nothing more than that,” she explained. “Listen, I know where to go to find intel on him.”

“Then why are they waiting for the cryptologists? Why not send you?” Once more, she clacked her tongue.

“Because Elias is too protective as is Merrick! Listen, I don’t fucking want to have to explain, alright! I’m daring you to come with me. That’s it, that’s what I’m asking of you. Are you going to man up?”

“Why do you even need me?” David slowly asked. “You don’t seem the sort to rely on anyone.”

“Cause I need you to get the helicopter. I’m not ‘officially’ here, if you catch my drift. What do you think would happen if an ex-Federation soldier went and stole a U.S. copter? The Ghosts have pulled my mercenary ass out of the fire more than once. But this? No, this I can’t let it rest. Also, you were a U.S. Army Ranger and now a Ghost. If I’m to have someone watch my back, I couldn’t ask for a better soldier. But fuck it all, Hesh, I can’t sit here and wait while the others are being targeted! I already lost Ajax. I can’t bear to lose anyone else.”

He silently debated for a moment. He was so going to regret this.

“Fine. I’ll take that bet but I want something in return, Moreno.”

“Name it,” she automatically replied without hesitation.

“No, I think that’ll wait until we come back. A bit of incentive to make it back in one piece. So, how you want to go about this?”


	4. Chapter 4

### Chapter Three : Call Me Wrecker

  


  
The sun was beating down on them, the humid heat making sweat trickle down her back while flies buzzed all around her. Sonia would have batted them away but her hands were tied behind her back, those she had once called — if albeit reluctantly — brothers-in-arms standing in front of her with their weapons drawn. She looked defiantly at each and everyone of them. She would never let them see her cower!

“I must say the evidence against you are overwhelming, Aspirant,” Captain Sosa said, a triumphant smirk gracing his lips.

She clacked her tongue in irritation at the rank despite the predicament she found herself in. She was, or at least had been, a lieutenant in the Colombian Air Force before her beloved country had been forced to joined with the Federation. She was barely a rank below the asshole not to mention one of their best helicopter pilots.

“Got anything to say in your defence?” he added.

“How about my AK-12 up your fucking ass and me emptying its cartridg—” The back of his hand hit her hard on the cheek. The throbbing sting made her sit straight in the small hard cot that passed as a bed on the military base, her hand cupping her cheek. Though it had been only a dream, she could still feel it.

Her fingers moved down until they traced the puckered scar. Sosa had taken great pleasure in slowly carving her up. She would have died had Ghosts not been on a scouting mission. Only later had she learnt that it had been Ajax’ bullet which had shattered Sosa’s shoulder and Merrick who had rushed to grab her while the others covered him. She owed her very life to them. She would _not_ let Rorke kill more Ghosts!

Swinging her legs off the bed, she sat with her elbows resting on her thighs, her head bowed down. She was not looking forward to what she was about to do. She had valiantly kept her skeletons well locked in the closet but now, to try and keep her friends alive, she would blast its door wide open.

According to her watch, she still had a few hours before meeting Hesh. Sonia had no idea how the man had done it but he had actually requisitioned an helicopter, a Eurocopter EC-635 to be more precise. She loved the smaller birds. They were so easier to manoeuvre though a bitch to crash without killing oneself.

“Bad choice of words, Sonia,” she hissed. She did not fear death, far from it. She had faced it and had conquered it years ago but her mission was too important to take undue risks. The fact Elias’ older son would be accompanying her did not help. She would do all to keep him safe. But there was no choice for it. She could not do it alone and neither Merrick nor Keegan would ever accept being part of what she was planning, at least not if she was with them and Sonia knew she was about the only person who would be able to beat the information out of the asshole.

With an impatient clack of her tongue, she got up, stretched and quickly dressed up. Staying in this cubbyhole of a room with her chaotic thoughts would drive her nuts. It was best she used the time left to work the stress out. The last thing she wanted was to end up crashing the helicopter for no other reasons than being too hardwired. They would be, after all, flying deep within Federation territory. If everything went accordingly they would have the information they needed. If not, then they would be royally fucked.

  


  
“Well hello, gorgeous.” David had actually dreamt about Moreno whispering that to him while slowly getting undressed. What had ensued had been one of the wettest dreams he had ever had since his teenage years. Unfortunately, outside of his pornographic fantasy, she was not talking to him at all but to Riley, who was dutifully sitting beside him. “Such a beautiful boy! What’s his name?”

“It’s Riley. He’s been with me through thick and thin when I was stationed near No Man’s Land. Never hurt to have another pair of eyes and Riley here is a champ at infiltration,” he explained while trying his best not to remember his dream. The last thing he wanted was to go on a mission with Moreno and have a boner every time he looked at her. “I’ve stashed gears on the copter last night while no one was watching.” Best to keep things as impersonal as he could.

“How were you able to convince someone to let you use the Eurocopter? Good thinking going with it, be the way,” she told him while kneeling down to pet Riley and, whore of a dog that he was, he was enjoying every minute of it. “Not only is it less likely to be spotted but the Federation uses them too so we might be lucky and fly right under their radar.”

“I can actually pilot it so I told the officer in charge of the heliport that I needed to warm up my wing muscles, so to speak. Naturally, I’m supposed to only fly in the vicinity of the base.”

“I’m impressed, Hesh,” Moreno said looking up from Riley to give him a genuinely warm smile. It was almost his undoing. This was going to be a long awkward mission.

“Yeah. Well, erm, we should go before they decide to deny me the chopper.”

They silently made their way toward the heliport, David trying his best not to let his eyes stray towards his companion while Riley, traitor that he was, kept bumping his flank against the woman.

“Hey Walker! Got it ready for you— Wait, you didn’t tell me you’d be with someone else and a dog to boot. I’m not sure—” the man in charge of the heliport said with a frown.

“Riley needs to learn how to stay inside a smaller helicopter. We never know what sort of situation we’ll find ourselves in,” he smoothly explained.

“Uh huh but what about her? She's not a soldier.”

He could sense Moreno tense beside him. He had to find a solution fast otherwise he was not too sure the poor man would survive to see another day.

“Come on,” he whispered walking closer to the officer. “I’m trying to impress her, you know?” The man took a good long look at the woman.

“You lucky bastard. Fine, far from me to deny a fellow soldier the chance to get laid. But don’t let me regret this, alright? Oh and tell me where you found her when you come back. Might go and try to hook myself one too,” this one finally whispered back.

“Thanks man. I owe you.” He opened the side door. “Riley, in!” he ordered, his war dog jumping inside the helicopter and obediently went to sit against one of the seats. He turned to Moreno but this one merely rolled her eyes and agilely slipped in the left pilot seat.

The rotors were already moving by the time he himself got in. The officer in charge of the heliport shouted something but the noise was too loud though, by the look on this one’s face, he had realised how adroitly he had been fooled. David could only hope he would not be welcomed by the MPs upon their return. Still, there was nothing to be done about it for the helicopter was already in the air and moving away from the base.

“Best make yourself comfortable, Hesh. We’ve got a bit of a ride ahead of us,” he heard her say as soon as he put on the headphones. Not for the first time, he wondered why he had agreed to go with her. He did not even know what she had planned to do, only that she needed help and, like a nerd in front of the Prom Queen, he had blindly agreed.  
  
Sonia knew it was a matter of time before the Ghosts realised she had, with the help of David Walker, highjacked an helicopter. She wanted to put as much distance between herself and the military base before that happened. Unfortunately, the moment came much sooner than later. If she did not know any better, she would have sworn Merrick had put a chip in her ass when she was not looking to know where she was at all time.

“What the fuck you think you’re doing?!” she heard Merrick’s unmistakable growl over the comms. He had never sounded this angry with her before.

“This channel is not secure,” she simply replied. After what had happened last time, after being pinged as soon as she opened communications with the U.S. base, she did not want to take any risks. Well, more risks than what they were taking right now by going on this mission.

“Fine, switch to our special channel.”

Not many knew of that one since it had been mainly used by Merrick, Ajax, Keegan and herself. For a moment, she entertained the idea of not complying but it was never prudent to push the man too much, even for her.

“Ok, got you,” he said when she switched channels. “Now what the fuck you think you’re doing?”

“Get off your high horse, Thomas! You know very well what I’m doing. I’m not sitting on my ass waiting for some dumb pendejo to crack the encryption,” she barked back. “I’ll get the information we need.”

There was a moment of silence on the other end of the comms.

“Then why? Why not take me or even Keegan? Why take the fucking greenhorn with you?” She knew he would not like the answer at all.

“Because you guys would try and stop me while he won’t cause he doesn’t know.” And he would not if she had her way. David ‘Hesh’ Walker did not need to know about her bloodied past. She did not want to see suspicion in his enthralling green eyes when he looked at her. She much preferred the interest that had been in his gaze during their poker game.

Silence once more. Could she dare hope Merrick had seen reason? Not fucking likely! The man was worse than a mangy mutt with a big meaty bone!

“Sonia,” she heard someone say. Damn that bastard! He had given the comms over to Elias knowing full well how far she would go for this one. “Please tell me you’re not going to do what I think you are.”

“It’s the only way. If anyone knows where Rorke is, it’ll be him,” she finally replied. She hated to disappoint him. Why had she been stupid enough to have his son get entangled with her harebrained scheme? She heard the vicious curse in the background. It seemed Merrick had finally caught on. “It’s about time Sosa faces this ghost. And don’t worry, Elias, I’ll keep your son safe.” No matter the cost, she would protect David Walker.

That said, she cut the comms off before Elias could convince her to fly back to the base and concentrated on piloting. It was the only way for her to not be dragged back into the memories. Those would come soon enough when she would be once more, face to face with the man she hated above all else.

“It’s a nice name, Sonia that is,” she heard Hesh say. He was obviously trying to make some small talk. In any other circumstances, she would have clacked her tongue in impatience but she was actually grateful for it.

“Yeah, that’s me, Sonia Wrecker Moreno,” she snorted back.

“Wrecker? That’s an unusual middle name.” That actually made her laugh.

“Is Hesh yours?” she teased. “No, my middle name is Isabel. Wrecker is the nickname Ajax gave to me on the day we met.”

“Why Wrecker?” She laughed once more.

“Let’s say I have a tendency to deliberately crash my birds.”

“Wait what? You actually make it a habit of crashing your helicopter? Can you, maybe, let me and Riley off at the next stop, please?”

“Don’t worry, Hesh. I’m not planning on doing it this time. Still, might be a good idea to have a parachute on hand. You know, just in case.”

Hearing his deep laugh made Sonia actually glad she had asked — alright tricked him! — into coming with her. But it was only because she needed someone to watch her back and the fact he had been a U.S. Army Ranger and not because of his deep forest green eyes or his warm voice!

  


  
Their flight had been, so far, smooth and without any incidents. Though Moreno had not yet shared the details of their clandestine mission, David could guess they were now deep into Cuba airspace. So far, they had not been hailed by anyone from the Federation. It did help that she had cut all external communications. Still, either she was very adept at piloting under their radar or their enemy were not as watchful as they should be. Whatever the case, he was glad. The last thing he wanted was for them to be found out.

“Mind telling me where we’re going?” he finally asked after a while. How could he prepare himself if he was kept in the dark? She was not answering. “Moreno? You’re still with me here?” Still nothing but silence.

Something was wrong.

He got up only to fall right back in his seat, his arm going around Riley to hold him tightly against him, when the helicopter sharply banked to the side. He quickly fastened his seatbelt while still keeping his dog secure.

“Moreno, talk to me!” he barked when the chopped dropped several feet in the air.

“Storm, a bad one. Mierda! I checked our flight path’s weather last night and this morning! It wasn’t supposed to be like this! Hang on tight. I’ll try to fly us out of it,” she almost shouted through the headphones. “Trust me, David, I’ll get us to safety.”

The situation had to be dire indeed for she had used his first name. All David could to was hold Riley tightly and have faith in Moreno’s piloting skills. If he survived this, he would never do anything stupid ever again no matter how enthralling a pair of dark brown eyes could be.

The helicopter started to badly shake.

“Mayday, Mayday, Mayday! This is AF 25-458, AF 25-458, AF 25-458. Got hit by a rogue storm. Losing engines fast. Position, 54 miles south of Matanzas. Altitude, 8500 feet. Airspeed, 140 knots. Heading, 172 degrees. Two persons on board. AF 25-458. Over!” Nothing but static answered her distress call. He heard her repeat it again after a moment. Still nothing but static. “ _Mierda_! Hang on tight, David. I’m diving for the ground and hoping to auto-rotate the shit out of this bird before it loses its tail!”

He felt the helicopter rapidly drop down and though he tried to look out of the side windows, all that was visible was the rain splattering hard against it. Through his headphones, he could hear the incessant beeping of the console. He could only guess at what was happening in the cockpit.

There was the sickening sound of metal ripping followed by Moreno’s screams and then, they started to spin madly. David quickly bent down to protected Riley with his upper body. He closed his eyes and though he considered himself an atheist, he started to pray.


	5. Chapter 5

### Chapter Four : Into The Unknown

  


  
They had been fighting this damn war for so long now that every soldiers had learnt to appreciate any enjoyable moments they could find and, for David, none were more satisfying than spending his off duty time with the hottest woman he had ever bedded. He had always thought it stereotypical to say South American women were passionate in everything they did but Moreno had more than proved — multiple times even — that it was not just a myth. That woman was a bomb in bed! They were in a hotel room not far from the military base and had no plans on going out until he was due back on duty. They were making the most of this time away from the war, from the Ghosts, from everyone else. Just the two of them going at it like rutting rabbits. A more than deserved down time. They had, after all, been detrimental in finding Rorke and ending the bastard’s life—

“Hesh. Come on, wake up. We have to go! Hesh. Hesh! _David_!”

He opened his eyes, his lips curving in a smile at seeing Moreno bend over him.

“Can’t get enough of me, can you, sweetheart?” he said sleepily, his hand lifting to lightly caress her cold cheek.

Wait. Something was off. Why was she so cold to the touch? And this wasn’t the hotel room…

“Fuck!”

“Yes, it does seem to be what you have in mind, Hesh, but I think our current situation is more pressing than any sort of itch you want scratched,” she replied in snark.

It had all been a dream and nothing more. They had been flying over Cuba when they had been hit by a storm. He remembered going down and then nothing—

“Riley!” he suddenly shouted. “Where’s my dog?” He tried to sit up but Moreno put a restraining hand on his chest.

“First off, relax. You’ve got a gash on your head and the last thing I want is to have you pass out on me after being unconscious for so long. As for Riley, he’s right there, safe and sound,” she reassured him. He lifted his hand though this time not to caress her but to gently ruffle Riley’s head.

“I can’t believe we survived,” he whispered.

“I’ll admit that when we lost the tail boom, I was sure we were goners. The fact we were already going down and crashed on water-soaked ground made all the difference between us being battered but alive to being killed.”

“Guess you live up to your nickname, huh! Wrecker indeed,” he could not help but chuckle. She half-smirked.

“Do you live up to yours? Hesh means ‘high-explosive squash head’, no?” He hated the fact he felt himself blush.

“Actually, it’s in reference to being courageous or reckless—”

“Yeah, reckless pretty much sums you up otherwise you probably wouldn’t be here,” she snorted. “This crash is not even my most impressive to date. I’m almost disappointed.”

“Oh? Which is it then? Your most impressive I mean,” he asked. David realised the small talk was nothing more than an attempt at glossing over what he had said when he had regained consciousness. At least she had not blown his brain out.

“Do you think you can sit up? Slow and easy though. How’s your head? Are you feeling woozy?” she diverted instead of answering. It seemed Moreno was adamant in not talking about herself.

“I’m fine,” he said while sitting up. His hand quickly went to his head as a throbbing pain made itself known, his fingers touching cloth instead of skin. She had taken the time to bandage him. “What about you? Are you alright?” He heard her clack her tongue, the sound conveying impatience better than any words would have.

“Nothing that’ll slow me down,” she replied. It far from reassured him. Instead, it made him wonder how badly injured she was. After all, she had lived through another crash not long ago but he knew better than to press the matter. Sonia ‘Wrecker’ Moreno was a tough as nails sort of woman it seemed. “I’ve already gone through the gears you brought. We should think about getting out of this dead bird and find some shelter from the storm.” She seemed to hesitate for a moment. “There’s also the risk of the Federation having intercepted my distress call before we crashed. If so, they’ll converge to our last known position so putting as much distance between ourselves and this crash site would be advisable. Hopefully we’ll find a dry and defensible place.”

“Do you know where we are?” David asked getting up, bracing himself on the side of the helicopter when a wave of vertigo washed over him. It was not before she reached out to stabilise him that he noticed the large bloodied bandage on her left arm. “Shit! Are you alright?!”

“I said I was fine!” she hissed coldly, the venom in her voice promising dire retribution if he was stupid enough not to drop the subject. “As for where we are, we were flying over the Parque Nacional Ciénaga de Zapata when the storm hit us.”

“Isn’t that a swamp? So we’re stuck in marshlands? Not much covers to be found,” he sighed.

“Well, we sure won’t find one if we stay here!” she snapped back.

“I understand the risk of being detected by the enemy but we’re relatively dried here. Do we really want to venture outside? Not only is it raining cats and dogs but the sun’ll be going down soon,” he argued.

David really was not relishing travelling through marshlands in the dark while getting soaking wet. There was no guarantee that there would be any shelter to be found. The touristic industry had died the moment the war had begun. Not that he expected to find a five stars hotel in the middle of a swamp.

“You must have really hit your head hard not to realise we’re standing in inch deep muddy water,” Moreno hissed before sighing tiredly. “I think we’re slowly sinking actually. The last thing I want is to be trapped in the helicopter with no way out as wet mud fills in.”

“Well when you put it that way,” he chuckled feebly.

“One last thing. Are you well enough to wade through the swamp with Riley on your shoulders?” He started to nod but then frowned. If he carried Riley then he would be very limited in the sort of weapons he could use. They were, after all, deep in enemy territory. They would need all the firepower they had just in case, especially with Moreno’s injured arm. No, they could not afford to have him hindered.

“A swamp is not an ideal place but nothing Riley can’t deal with. He’s one tough boy.” By the way she looked at him, David had an inkling she had seen past his bullshit.

“I’m sure he can but there might be crocodiles about,” she explained after a short hesitation.

“Might?”

“Yeah. I mean, if I remember correctly, the Cuban Crocodile was on the verge of extinction before the ODIN strike. I don’t know about you but I’m not keen on taking the chance and I usually relish a good bet.”

“Riley, the good boy that he is, will be very happy to ride on my shoulders,” he chuckled before turning serious. “But that means I’ll only be able to use my Berretta M9A1.”

“I’m naturally more familiar with either the SA-805 or the SC-2010 but you can’t be around Merrick and not learn how to use a Remington R5.” As if to prove it, Moreno expertly clipped a cartridge in the powerful assault rifle and held it in a similar fashion as the Ghost, her injured arm not seemingly hampering her.

“Did he teac—” The cold glare she threw his way made him swallow the rest of his question.

“It’s whenever you’re ready,” she said shouldering the bag he had stowed, a slight grimace appearing on her face when she moved her left arm. That done, she deftly tied her hair in a ponytail. It made her look younger. David wondered how old she was but knew better than to actually ask. It was not a question a man should ever ask a woman especially when said woman held a very powerful assault rifle.

“Come on, boy,” he whispered lifting Riley over his left shoulder and holding him steady with his hand, this one automatically becoming lax though not before licking the side of his face once. “Yeah, I love you too, buddy.” He turned his attention back to Moreno and sharply nodded.

He watched her push the side door wide open, the noise making him grind his teeth. Hopefully the storm would muffle it though he would be surprised if anyone patrolled outside in such weather.

She swept left and right, her weapon expertly held before raising her fist. She even used the same hand signals as Merrick and Keegan. He silently followed her out of the wreckage getting pelted by heavy rain as soon as he did so, the wind lashing violently at him. At least it was not cold but that would fast change with the coming night.

They rounded the helicopter, his feet sinking into watery mud making every steps precarious. Despite the storm, the wreckage was still visible. The sight of it chilled David’s blood. The cockpit was almost entirely smashed in. It was a miracle Moreno had survived!

He turned his gaze away from the twisted metal, his eyes settling on the woman slowly walking in front of him, her Remington R5 held expertly in her hands as she constantly swiped left and right. Taking a small moment to glance down at her ass, sexily moulded by her wet pants, David took the rearguard’s position as they walked away from the crash site and into the denser marshlands.

  


  
Damn but her left arm burned something fierce! Though Sonia had endured worse than a slashed arm, she had not been stuck in a swamp. Hopefully, her wound would not become infected trudging as they were in mucky water. Still, there was nothing to be done for it. An infection was nothing compared to being overtaken by the enemy though, so far, they had not encountered another living being, not even crocodiles. However, that could change at any moment. There was no way the Federation would leave such a big area of Cuba unguarded. The emplacement was much too strategic since it would give Americans access to strike at the heart of the Federation. It was actually a wonder no one in the U.S.A had ever thought to build a secret base here.

Whatever may be the case, the good news was that they had put some distance between themselves and the wreckage. The bad news was that they had found no suitable shelter, the rain still pouring down. At least the winds had somewhat diminished in intensity. Unfortunately, the sun was fast sinking down below the horizon. They would have to stop soon for there was no way they could walk through a swamp at night, especially not one she was unfamiliar with. Perhaps they could find a relatively less drenched ground underneath some trees?

Gazing over her shoulder, she quickly assessed Hesh to make sure he was still alright. He had, after all, hit his head when they had crashed so a concussion was a very real risk. Though the bandage around his head was soaked through, she was relieved to notice his gash had stopped bleeding. His bandage was not the only thing completely soaked. His shirt stuck on him like second skin showcasing well defined muscles. Unbidden, the memory of how he had regained consciousness, of what he had said and the look of lust in his eyes rose up in her mind. Her heart skipped a beat. She wondered what would have happened if he had kept on believing he was dreaming.

Sonia shook herself mentally. She had to remain vigilant! She hated being on the ground. It felt unnatural. Granted she could fight and was proficient enough with armed rifles thanks in part to her military training back with the Colombian army and, later on, to the Ghosts, but she still preferred to do her fighting in the air.

She was grateful Hesh had kept his silence despite having seen the extent of the wreckage. She did not want to admit she had lost time trying to extirpate herself from the cockpit, time which he could have badly needed her help. She had been scared, really scared when she had finally been able to reach him only to find him unconscious, blood pouring down his face, his body bent protectively around his dog. A man who thought of the safety of his pet before his own was a good man, or so her father had always told her. Even now, he was carrying Riley, holding him protectively over his muscular shoulder.

She sighed mentally.

It had been a mistake to make Hesh come with her. Hopefully, they would live through this. No, she would make damn sure he survived! His safety was now her number one priority. She silently swore to accept any punishment Elias would throw her way for endangering his oldest son in such a stupid way.

Sonia suddenly stopped and crouched, lifting her arm and closing her hand sharply. Hesh immediately stopped and crouched in turn. She had to admit that she liked the fact he did not balk, that he obeyed her silent command. Not many men would and not only because she was a woman but a mercenary. Worst, she was an ex-Federation soldier!

Once more, she had to bring herself back to the current task. There, just over the hill, on what appeared to be somewhat dry land, a dilapidated house could be seen. It must have been some sort of small resort one could rent in time’s past. Now though, it would make a good Federation camp or, more importantly, a perfect shelter for them.

Remaining completely immobile, unmindful of the rain, Sonia intently studied the house. There did not appear to be any movements within and no vehicles were parked nearby. Still, that did not mean it was inhabited.

She indicated to Hesh to remain in place while she furtively moved towards the house, going from trees to trees, stopping and watching in between each, her armed rifle primed and ready in case she ended up in a gunfight.

So far, so good. Still no movements from within. Actually, the house was completely dark, no smoke wafting from the chimney, nothing. Now that she was closer to it, Sonia noticed how utterly out of place it seemed, its construction not one usually found in Cuba or any parts of South America as a matter of fact.

She turned and indicated to Hesh to come up to where she was crouching. The man moved swiftly but without compromising stealth, Riley furtively following, his fur perfectly blending with the surrounding shadows.

“I haven’t detected anything. What’s your take? Risk it or go around and try to make sure it really is empty?” she whispered as soon as he stopped beside her. Sonia was not above asking his opinion. After all, they were both in the same predicament even if she was, or at least had been, of a superior rank than him.

“Got a better idea. Just let me take something from the backpack,” he answered, his arms brushing against her as he reach behind her to where the bag was. Her breath became temporarily lodged in her throat. “I’ll sync with Riley and send him to scout ahead.”

She could only nod her head, not trusting her voice so much his nearness affected her. Now was so not the time to start panting after a man! Maybe she should have gone to Merrick’s room last night but that was one door Sonia did not want to reopen. It was part of their past, a past they had mutually decided to end.

Sonia silently watched as Hesh gazed down at a screen while whispering commands. From where she was, she had difficulty seeing Riley move towards the house. He truly did meld into the shadows.

“I did told you he was the best at infiltration,” she heard her companion chuckle softly. “He’s the bestest of best boys. He always goes for the throat.” That actually made her smile, Hesh giving her a quick smouldering look before turning his attention back to the screen. She watched as he suddenly frowned. “Wait, there’s something wrong.”

She sharply turned her attention back to the house, her hands tightening their hold on the weapon.

“Get him out of there,” she hissed but he shook his head.

“His camera didn’t detect any movements but Riley is… I don’t know, he’s acting weird. He doesn’t want to move closer and I can actually hear him whimper. It’s like he’s scared of something. That dog went through battlefields, seen more than his fair shares of fights. He’s not easily spooked!”

“Mierda!”

Not hesitating, Sonia rushed out of cover and ran towards the house. In her head, she could hear Merrick’s voice growling at how she was impetuous. After all, her daredevil, risk-taking attitude had landed her dumb ass in trouble more than once. Unmindful of the rain pouring down her face, not willing to take the slight moment to wipe it with her forearm, she finally reached Riley, the dog huddled near the stairs leading to the front door, his tail firmly tucked between his rear legs.

She stopped and scanned their surroundings, her heartbeat loud in her ears, her breathing erratic. Her every nerves seemed to be on edge. The fact she could feel Riley tremble beside her did not help. However, nothing happened, no shouts, no bullets shredding her apart. The only sound were the rain, the winds, and her harsh breathing.

Taking a short moment to pat Riley on the head, Sonia inched up the stairs and stopped beside the closed door. No lights, no movements, nothing.

She took a deep breath, sent a silent prayer and kicked the door opened, the muzzle of the Remington R5 sweeping around, her finger ready to pull on the trigger. The only thing that met her was dust and a stale musty smell.

“Empty,” she finally called out to Hesh who had come to guard her rear, his own armed rifle in hand.

Her feet took her past the threshold. A cold shiver ran up her back, goosebumps pebbling her skin. Probably nothing more than a chilled breeze. At least, that is what she tried to convince herself. She was only partly successful.  
  
David looked up at the house, his hand shielding his eyes from the rain. There was something odd about the place. Who in their right mind would have constructed such thing in the middle of a swamp? He knew Cuba had once been popular with tourists but the house did not seem to have catered to tourists. It was too secluded for that. Furthermore, the Dutch Colonial architecture jarred with its surroundings. No, there was definitely something weird.

Still, it was a dry place, somewhere they could set camp and, if they were lucky, hold out until rescue came. Now if only the thought of spending the night in the house did not make him want to keep on walking.

“Come on, Riley,” he said not wanting to leave Moreno alone inside for too long. His dog stayed rooted in place, his tail tucked between his legs, a soft whine barely audible over the rain. He took a few steps towards the house and slapped his leg. “Riley, heel!” he commanded but still his dog did not move. Riley had never disobeyed an order, not since his training as a military dog. “Dumb mutt. I’m not going to let you drown outside.”

He picked him up in his arms and walked towards the house. All Riley did was continue to whine softly. He felt as if his steps were sluggish, his feet slowly walking up the stairs, the front door just waiting for them to enter like an opened maw. There he was spooking himself! Logan would so laugh his ass off at him right about now!

He walked past the threshold resolutely. He would not let his imagination run wild with—

The door closed behind him.

David was almost unable to stop himself from shrieking. Stupid drafts! Stupid fucking odd house with fucking drafts that were making him jumpy for no fucking reasons!

“Awww, is this your honeymoon?” he heard Moreno snicker. He turned his gaze away from the closed door. He hoped she had not witnessed his reaction. Merrick would probably not have let a dumb house spook him. She was standing in front of a doorway on the left side of the foyer, a staircase alongside it leading to a dark second floor. Moreno nodded her head at Riley. “Is he going to be alright?”

He gently put him down but all Riley did was huddle near his legs shivering. His reaction was simply not normal. Nothing about this entire thing felt remotely normal.

“I don’t know,” he answered truthfully while wiping the water off his face. “He doesn’t like this place I think. I don’t blame him.” He looked around, a chill making him shiver. “No, I don’t blame him one bit.”

“Yeah, there’s definitely something weird about this house. Come look at what I found in there.” He followed her into the room, Riley staying close by him. “What you make of that?” Moreno asked. He looked around the large living room his brain trying to comprehend what he was seeing.

“What the fuck?!”

Provisions of all sorts, ammunitions and guns, rolled blankets, all were neatly placed on one side of the room. This house had obviously been used as some sort of camp but, by the thick layer of dust covering everything, no one had been here in quite some time.

“I don’t know about you but I would never leave such things behind. Even if those stationed here were all killed, someone would have come to gather these supplies. There’s even a SINCGARS. One does not leave such equipment behind. I wonder what happened to those stationed here…”

“Think we could use it?” he asked nodding his head towards the radio.

“Not if we want to communicate with the base back in Key West. It’s got a max range of ten kilometres. I was able to grab the comm off the helicopter before getting out of the cockpit. I stashed it in the bag. I’ll need higher grounds though. Probably the roof if I can access it. Houses like these must have some sort of attic, sí?”

David would have suggested that she left it to him but guessed she would take it badly and, in all honesty, he hated attics with a passion for reasons he did not truly wish to remember. Basements were another place he abhorred above all else. He had watched too many horror movies in his youths to ever feel comfortable in basements. Something told him that this damn house had at least one of each.

“But first things first. Why don’t you set us up in here while I go check out the rest of the house and make sure it’s secure,” she added. He was not too keen on getting separated but he could think of no logical arguments against. It was not like the house was so big that she would get lost.

“Yeah, ok. Hey, Moreno?” She turned to give him a quizzical look. “Be careful,” he finally said.

“But being careful is so boring. Come on, Hesh! I’m just going to go look around the other rooms,” she teased him back with a wink before walking out of the living room. No matter her bravado, David had noticed the fact she had not lowered her weapon despite all evidences that this house had been abandoned for a long while.

Looking around the room, his gaze settled on the tall windows. Unfortunately, it had not turned sunny and dry outside, quite the contrary. It seemed as if the storm was making a much unwelcome comeback and, with the night fast coming, they would be well and truly stuck in this house until the morning. Fuck it all!

A noise upstairs made him jump. Footsteps. Moreno had to be checking the rooms on the second floor. He had to stop being so jumpy!

He turned his attention back to the windows. Once darkness settled, anyone outside would be able to look in. Not that he thought anyone other than them was crazy enough to be out and about in this fucking swamp but it was best not to take any risks. He pulled the thick curtains close, the dust flying all around him making him sneeze like mad.

He hated this house with a passion! He was cold, wet, and grimy plus his head was killing him! With the drapes closed, the living room was shrouded in darkness. There was no way the electricity was still functional. David went to the wall and flicked the switch. Yep, no lights. It was a good thing the previous occupants had left a few hurricane lanterns as well as powerful flashlights.

He turned his gaze to the big fireplace, logs neatly piled in its hearth. It would be a quick way to not only get some illumination but some much needed warmth and a place to dry their clothes. Nevertheless, he did not move towards it. It would be a bad idea to have smoke waft out. Furthermore, he was not sure the chimney was functional. There was no way on this Earth he would put his head up in it! It was better to be uncomfortable than anything other than!

“David,” he suddenly heard.

He took a moment to calm his erratic heartbeat.

“Yeah, what is it? Need help with anything?” he replied walking out of the living room and into the foyer. Strange. Moreno was not there. She had called him, had she not? Surely he had not imagined it.

“David.” He turned his gaze to a door on the other side of the foyer. It was partially opened, a puddle of water in front of it. How had she gone from upstairs to down there so fast?

With a shrug of his shoulders, he walked towards the door only to almost trip when something caught the cuff of his left pant leg. Riley’s jaw was clamped on it and no matter what David tried, he would not let go.

“What’s wrong with you, boy?” he asked shaking his leg slightly but his dog simply did not let go. No, instead, Riley seemed intent on pulling him back to the living room. “Riley, stop!” he ordered but, like before, he disregarded the command.

“Hey, is everything alright?”

With a yelp, David span around while lifting his weapon.

“Whoa! Point that somewhere else, Hesh, or I may get trigger happy!” Moreno dangerously growled lifting her own assault rifle threateningly.

“What—? What are you doing there? How did you—?” he babbled looking over his shoulder at the door. It was closed, the floor dry, the dust in front of it undisturbed. A cold shiver ran down his back and it had nothing to do with the fact he was drenched. Riley let go of his cuff and sat down at his feet with a soft whine.  
  
Hesh was acting peculiar. He had not come across as jumpy back on the military base, far from it. Hell, the man had approached her, had had the guts to go through her dare. He had been audacious enough to ‘borrow’ an helicopter. He had been a U.S. Army Ranger! No, there was definitely something going on with the man but all Sonia could do was hope it was not a sign of a bad concussion. Despite all the equipment and supplies the Federation had left behind in this damn house, there was nothing to deal with such medical emergencies. As it was, there was nothing she could even do for her own wounds. Why did she have to crash her bird in the middle of a fucking swamp?

“The rooms upstairs are secured,” she said thinking it best not to comment on Hesh’s strange attitude.

“Did you find the attic?” he asked. Though it seemed as if he was trying his best to appear nonchalant, his gaze kept turning to the door on the opposite side of the staircase. He was definitely acting peculiar.

“Yes but I couldn’t open the hatch leading to it,” she replied.

Actually, she had not tried but she would never admit it. The mere thought of opening that damn hatch, of going up the steep ladder into complete darkness had actually sent her scurrying back down the stairs like some sort of dumb scared mouse. She hated the feeling but her instincts were louder than her bravado and they were screaming at her to stay well away from the attic.

“What about you? Find anything noteworthy?”

“No.” His answer was short and neutral though his gaze drifted towards the door.

Her instincts were screaming at her again but this time, she resolutely ignored them. This was only a house, a weird house, a house that made her skin break out in goosebumps but nevertheless _just_ a house!

“What do you think? Basement?” she asked while walking towards it, forcing her feet forward. Hesh made a strange choking sound. “You sure you’re fine?” Deep down, she fervently prayed he was not, anything really to stop her from opening that damn door.

“Yeah I’m fine. Just a bit of a headache, nothing more. Don’t worry, Moreno, I know all the symptoms of a concussion and I’m not displaying any.” he reassured her.

“Well, if you’re sure.” She was dragging for time. She was such a stupid, superstitious bitch! She had let her nerves convince her not to go to the attic, she would not let herself becoming scared of going to the basement. She was not even sure the door led to the basement. It could be nothing more than a hall closet.

Her hand reached for the doorknob. Her throat had become dry. A cold shiver travelled down her back. She sent a quick prayer to the Heaven.

Her fingers closed around the knob and turned it.

“Huh,” she said, her hand trying in vain to turn the doorknob. “Is is locked? But there doesn’t seem to be a keyhole. Maybe it’s stuck?”

No matter what she tried, the door did not budge at all.

Relief coursed through her entire body, her hectic heartbeat slowing down to a normal beat.

She looked over her shoulder at Hesh, the smile on her lips vanishing. The man looked as if he had seen a ghost so white his completion was. His gaze was riveted on the door. Sonia turned to look at it but it still was firmly closed. No matter what he said, he definitely was not alright.

“Come on,” she said stepping to where he was, her hand briefly going to grab his shoulder. “Let’s get you back to the living room and then I’ll go and check the rest of the rooms on this floor.”

“But—”

“No buts, Sergeant! That’s an order!”

That seemed to pull him from whatever was bothering him, his dark forest green eyes assessing her, a smile curling the edge of his lips. Damn but he was a fine man!

“An order?” he chuckled. “Are you pulling ranks on me?”

Sonia put a hand on her hip and cocked an eyebrow.

“Sí, I am. I do outrank you. At least, I used to.”

“Oh? What rank did you have?”

“Lieutenant but, like I said, that was a long time ago when I was still military. Come on, off to the living room with you!”

“Are you really that adverse in talking about yourself, Sonia?”

While giving him a seducing smile, her right hand lazily travelled up his arm to his shoulder and down his chest, her fingers stopping just shy of his belt. Hesh’s forest green eyes turned dark, the muscle in his jaw briefly clenching.

“You’d have to get me drunk for me to spill my guts about my past, David, and, believe me, there’s not enough booze in this entire house to achieve that.” Giving him a sultry wink, she trailed her hand briefly over his belt. “But who knows? The evening is still young.” That said, she walked past him.  
  
David was almost tempted to step outside, not only to get out of this damn house but to get a now much needed cold rain shower. With just a few words and a light-as-feather touch, Moreno had set him on fire. He was all hot and bothered but at least it had turned his mind away from that fucking door. Still, had he imagined the entire thing?

He turned his attention back to it. It was still firmly closed. He had told her he was fine but was he truly? Could it be his head injury was graver than he thought? His fingers lightly touched the bandage making him wince as the throbbing seemed to gain intensity for a moment.

If it was only a symptom of a concussion, then why was Riley acting so strangely? Could it be his dog was sensing his distress and reacting to it? That made more sense than doors opening by themselves and voices calling his name. He went to stand in front of the door while ignoring Riley’s soft whine. There was nothing strange about this! It was only his injury making him see and hear things, nothing more!

He lifted his hand, his fingers almost touching the doorknob.

His gut twisted, the hair on his arms lifting. David felt like someone… no some _thing_ was watching him. He had not survived all he had since the Federation had attack the United States by ignoring his gut instinct and right now it was telling him to stay well away from that door.

He walked back to the living room and took a deep calming breath.

“What’s going on here, Riley?” he asked. “Am I imagining things?” Unfortunately, his dog had no answers to give him.

“Well, I would say the house is secure,” Moreno said walking in the living room. “The only other rooms on this floor are the dining room and the kitchen. There is a door there leading to the backyard, or what would pass as in a damn swamp, but a tree fell against it so there’s no way anyone can come in through there. Other than the ground floor windows and the front door, there’s no point of access.”

She did not seem fazed at all. It was like the house affected only him. Another proof that it was all in his head.

“Good thinking closing the drapes, Hesh, but why didn’t you start a fire? Is the fireplace clogged?” She went to it and, much to his horror, stuck her head inside the chimney.

Time seemed to stretch, blood pounding in his ears. He wanted to go to her, to pull her out but his feet were glued on the floor. It was only when she stood back up that he realised he had been holding his breath. What did he think would happen? That somehow her head would be ripped off?

“I don’t see anything wrong with it but, then again, I’m not an expert on chimney.”

“I didn’t think it was a good idea to have a fire. Smoke wafting out and all,” he lamely explained.

“Oh, didn’t think about that. It would have been nice to get some warmth in here and dry our clothes but you’re right. Much better to be uncomfortable than to alert the enemy as to our presence here.”

That was not exactly the reason why he had not used the fireplace but David would not willingly admit it to her.

“What about the radio? Have you tried to see if its still functional?”

“No,” he answered. “I— well I actually hadn’t thought about making sure it still worked since you said it would not be powerful enough to send a signal back to the base.”

“It’s not but it can be used to see if anyone in a near vicinity is communicating,” she said before turning her attention to the SINCGARS.

He had to admit that Moreno was a resourceful woman. Here they were, stranded in a swamp on a mission no one knew about and yet, instead of fretting, she was actively trying to find solutions. He did not know what sort of soldier she had been with the Federation but, right about now, he was damn glad she was on their side. He yearned to know more about her, to get to know the real Sonia Moreno, the woman behind the nickname Wrecker.

“That should do it. The trick is being able to listen in without being pinged. But, there’s not a comm device I haven’t been able to tweak.”

David went to stand beside her as she flicked the switch to on.

Nothing, just static.

She changed frequencies but still nothing but static.

“Maybe it’s broken?” he suggested.

“That or we’re truly alone in this fucking swamp,” she sighed. “Well, it was worth a shot. We can rest easier now knowing we won’t be pulled into a fight. At least not yet.”

Just as her fingers hovered over the off switch, the static stopped.

Silence. The sort of silence that seemed to pulsate.

David’s breath caught in his throat, a growl making him turn his gaze down to Riley. This one’s ears were flat on his head, his lips drawn in a snarl exposing his wickedly sharp teeth.

“What—” he started to say but his voice was drowned from the cacophony of sounds blasting from the radio. Screams. Endless screams that turned his blood to ice.  



	6. Chapter 6

### Chapter Five : Out From The Dark

  


  
David was rooted on the floor, his heart beating so loudly it was a miracle it was not drowning the chilling sound coming from the radio. He had never heard such screams in his life. It was almost as it they were not produced by anything human. To think they came from people was too horrifying to imagine and yet, he could discern words amid the wails but he was not able to grasp what was said.

A loud shout made him turn his attention away from the SINCGARS. He had barely enough time to grab Riley’s collar and pull him away from the table. Moreno had raised her assault rifle, the look on her face more terrifying than the screams. Without warning, she pulled the trigger, the shrieks extinguished in a burst of bullets.

“Moreno!” he called out but she continued to shoot, the sound deafening. The radio was utterly destroyed but still she continued. “Sonia!” He laid his hand on her right arm. Only then did she lower her weapon. He could sense the tension in her. She was completely wound up.

“Is this a sick joke?” she asked harshly. “Is that it? A fucking sick joke?!”

She wrenched her arm free and started to pace the length of the living room, her hand rubbing the scar on the left side of her throat, her gaze fixed on the radio parts scattered around the floor.

“What do you mean by joke?” David asked slowly. He felt like he was standing in front of a dangerous predator. One false move, one false word and she would rip him apart.

“You heard the screams! These people are being burned alive! ALIVE, Hesh! Just like my pa— No, I won’t let it happen, not again!”

He threw all caution out of the windows. He grabbed Moreno’s shoulder, knocked the rifle away from her hands, and forcefully pushed her against the nearest wall, his forearm going across her chest to pin her there.

“Calm down, Moreno!” he said roughly. “Think for a minute!” She tried to push him away but he still not only towered over her but was physically stronger. He hated using his size in such a way, especially since she was a woman, but he would not let her put herself in danger. “It’s dark out and still stormy. You go out and you’ll get lost or worst! You said it yourself, the SINCGARS has a max range of ten klicks. Add the weather conditions and I’m betting it’s less than half that right now. We’re the only ones in this swamp!”

“Then how do you explain what we heard?” she countered with a snarl.

“I can’t but fuck it all, there’s something weird going on here. You can’t tell me you haven’t sensed it.”

Finally, she stopped struggling, her head bowed down. He relaxed his hold while fighting the urge to gently tucked a strand of hair behind her ear.

“You’re right,” she whispered. “The SINCGARS, in this weather, would not breach even five kilometres. There’s nothing that near this house, I’m pretty sure of it. It’s too isolated.” She stopped for a moment. “I’m sorry for reacting the way I did. I can’t explain what happened, what we heard, but it’s no excuse. I should know better than to lose my temper.”

There was a story there, something that had probably happened in her past but David had an inkling she would not welcome such questions right about now.

“We’ve all lost it at one time or another, Moreno,” he said taking a step back, his arm falling to his side. “We’re just human after all, soldiers fighting a fucking hellish war.” He gave her a crooked smile. “There’s rations over there. I don’t know about you but I’m hungry.”

Food was a much safer subject than her past or that damn radio. Like her, he did not think there was anything from miles around but it was the only explanation, that somewhere very near, the Federation was currently torturing people. The alternative was far more unnerving to consider. After all, if they were truly alone, then where did those screams came from?

  


  
Since the MRE were still good, that is if one did not count the taste, then that meant those stationed at the house had left less than five years ago which, once again, begged the question as to why they had abandoned their post, why they had not brought all the supplies with them. What the fuck had happened?

Sonia felt like hitting the back of her head on the wall. However there was already one of them with an injured head and possibly a concussion, they did not need another one.

“MREs are already infect but cold ones are the worst. We’re in hell, Riley,” she heard Hesh grumble from the other side of the room.

He was wisely keeping his distance from her. Not that she was still pissed at him, far from it. He had been right. She would have gotten lost since night had fallen and, by the sound of the rain pelting against the window panes, the storm had regained in intensity. Yes, she was on the hot-headed side and took unnecessary risks but she had never lost her head in such away.

No, that was not true. She had once before. The day she had become a mercenary. Still, those screams… She closed her eyes and pushed her cold ration away. She would not be able to swallow anything, her stomach rebelling at the thought of food.

She had not imagine those wails, Hesh had heard them too. But how? How was it possible? She could have sworn she had heard her parents calling out in agony, screaming while flames licked their flesh.

She had not been there the day such a fate had taken her parents. For a long time she had believed what General Almagro had told her, that Americans had torn through her native village, pilfering and killing all the inhabitants. How much loyalty he had gained with those lies. She had followed her orders without a thought, wanting only to avenge her parents until she had learnt the truth.

No matter what, only a few people knew what had happened to her parents, Almagro, her old ‘superior’ Captain Sosa, and a few of the Ghosts. The General was long dead though Sosa still breathed despite her best effort in ending his fucking life. There was no way this one would know about her being in a Cuban swamp trapped in this fucking house.

It made no sense! Either they were not as alone as they thought and somewhere very near, people were being burned alive, people who sounded just like her parents or— or it was all in her head. She had now lived through two crashes in a matter of just days. Could it have affected her perception? But if so, how could Hesh experience the same thing? Could they have shared some sort of strange psychosis? Could the house be—

She did not finish that thought. It was too far-fetched to even consider. It was best to turn away from such thoughts so as to not manifest them.

“Hey, Hesh?” she said, clearing her throat slightly. “Remember when I dared you to come with me? You accepted but wanted something in return?”

“Yeah, I remember. Something I wanted to ask you when we’d return to the base.”

“Well, seeing as the mission went full FUBAR and we don’t know when we’ll get back, now’s a good a time as any, I’d say.” She was trying to distract herself, anything not to let her mind come up with things best not thought about.

Hesh did not immediately answer, instead, he got up and joined her, their shoulders briefly touching as he sat down on the floor beside her. She was grateful for his nearness, the warmth of his body chasing the coldness that had besieged her at hearing those screams.

“Actually, what I was referring to was a question I wanted to ask you without being shot at,” he finally explained with a warm chuckle.

“A question, huh! I bet I know which one,” she snorted.

“Maybe but maybe not. I’m almost tempted to take that bet,” he teased back.

“Unless I’m mistaken, it’s a bet that landed us in this shitty situation.”

“True but it could be worst, you know? Here I am, stuck in a house with a beautiful woman while a storm is raging outside. Take out the fact said house is beyond too weird for my taste with strange things happening and we’d have a good base for a romantic story.”

Sonia started to laugh.

“Now you’re pulling my leg. You can’t seriously believe that this entire shitty thing qualifies as being romantic!” she said while shaking her head.

“Yeah, I am joking a bit,” he admitted, his shoulder lightly bumping against hers in companionship. “But not about the beautiful part. That, I completely mean it.”

She turned her head slightly to look at him, her heartbeat accelerating. She was making a mistake, the same damn one she had made before. Nevertheless, she did not pull away when Hesh’s hand lightly cupped the right side of her face, his thumb grazing the corner of her lips.

“You think it’s a good idea? With everything that’s happened? The things we heard from the rad—”

“Sonia,” he interrupted. The way he pronounced her name made her body quiver. “I can’t explain what we heard. Perhaps a recording of some kind, a sick and twisted sort of a prank amongst the Federations bastards. I don’t know. But no, me kissing you would never be a bad idea, at least not for me.”

“Well, there is a correlation between adrenaline and heightened libido.”

“Is there now?” His voice had become raspy.

“Sí. At least, I’m pretty sure I read that somewhere,” she whispered as his face bent closer to hers.

“I’d say that, with everything we’ve been through today, we’ve had our fair share of adrenaline, wouldn’t you say?” he asked, the closeness of his lips to hers making her skin tingle.

Her hand went to the back of his neck. She knew it was all for the wrong reasons but she did not care. She wanted to kiss him, to fuck him so badly. She needed to feel alive, to stop hearing the screams echoing in her head.

“Definitely,” she purred.

A sudden noise made them both jump. The magnetic pull between them was broken, Sonia pushing herself away from Hesh.

“Did you hear—?” he started to ask but she sharply raised her hand, the man falling silent automatically.

The sound came again. Footsteps.

Someone was upstairs. But she had searched all the rooms there and there had been no one! Actually, that was not altogether true. She had not searched the attic nor had she looked in the closets. But now, due to her lack of diligence brought upon by irrational fear she had probably put them in danger. Well, more than she had already by dragging all of them into this harebrained mission.

She did not want to put anyone in even more jeopardy but, with four rooms upstairs, she could not search them as efficiently by herself. Furthermore, she did not think Hesh would stay behind this time around. As if to prove it, this one silently got up while taking the safety off his assault rifle.

She did the same, pointing towards the ceiling before holding four fingers up. He nodded in understanding using the ‘stay’ hand signal to Riley, the dog obviously agitated but nevertheless sitting down obediently.

Sonia grabbed two of the smaller military grade flashlights, the kind that could easily be held with their weapons, handed one to Hesh and then took point.

Her Remington R5 held in shooting position, she carefully went up the stairs. Her stance was assured but deep inside she was shaking, her nerves strung tightly. Hopefully nothing would jump at her making her scream. At least, not in front of Hesh. For some reasons, she did not want him to think she was a wimp.

In truth, she liked having him at her back. Despite knowing him for such a short time, she did trust him. Granted, she lusted after him but that had no impact when it came to having someone have her back during a mission. Damn it! She truly was going down the same path as before.

Pushing the thought aside, she swept her weapon left and right upon reaching the top of the staircase, the beam of light from the flashlight barely piercing through the dark hallway. So far, nothing. Only silence met them. Something was not right. Something was not right at all! She could feel it deep in her bones. They could not have imagined those footsteps! The screams from the radio, though chilling, could have a very logical explanation to it but this? No, there was someone up here with them. Someone or some _thing_.

She lifted her weapon to shine the flashlight to where the attic trap was. It was still closed. Sonia almost breathed a sigh of relief. Even with Hesh, she did not want to venture in there. Anyway, they would not have heard footsteps from the attic all the way down to the living room, not with a floor in between. No, what they heard had come from up here.

She gestured at Hesh to take the right side while she the left. Two rooms each.

Though the hallway was not long, it seemed to stretch on and on as she made her way towards the farthest door, her gaze lifting to closely watch the attic hatch as she passed underneath it. Like last time, a shiver of dread coursed through her body.

She froze for a moment. Had the hatch moved? She could have sworn she saw it open a fraction. She swept her flashlight up but, just as before, the access to the attic was firmly closed, the cord to open the hatch and pull down the ladder not moving even an inch.

Her nerves were playing tricks on her and nothing more.

With that mindset, she pushed the door open, crouching almost at the same moment, the muzzle of her assault rifle sweeping the room. There was no one. This time, she did went and look in the closet. Other than old mouldy clothes, nothing was to be found in there. One room left for her to search and, seeing Hesh come out almost at the same time as her, only one for him also. So far, no signs of whoever had been walking up here.

Two rooms left.

Sonia stood in front of her last door. Here went nothing. If the fucker was hiding here, she would shred him up in a blast of bullet! She lifted her foot intent on kicking the door down.  
  
Riley’s ears swivelled forward. He had heard something, a noise not unlike one he himself made when digging a hole in the ground. Though his Alpha had commanded him to stay, he nevertheless padded outside the room he was guarding, the room where he did not feel as if ants were crawling all over him the way the rest of the house did. He knew the sensation well having once stumbled onto a nest of them when he had been a young pup.

He turned his eyes to the other side of where he was standing, a soft whine breaking past his muzzle. There was something on the air, something that made his tail curl protectively between his legs. As he stood there shivering in fear, the door slowly opened, the smell more overpowering than the last time it had stood ajar.

Something was stirring in the darkness found past the threshold, something that made Riley’s instincts bark at him to run away.  
  
The good news was that there was no gunshots coming from the room across the staircase. The bad news was that the one he was inspecting was just as empty. Four rooms and so far no one found and yet those footsteps had been all too real, had they not? No, he had heard them. Moreno had heard them. But, unless the person had vanished into thin air, there was no indications that anyone had been up here.

Naturally, the explanation could be as simple as the person hiding in a secret room but, for some reasons, David could not convince himself of that. No, once again, something strange had happened, something that he was sure was tied to this house. The prospect of going outside and taking his chance with the night and the storm was more and more appealing to him. The only thing preventing him from doing just that was that he did not want to have to drag Moreno out of the house. It would be the fastest way to put a stop on what had started downstairs just a few minutes ago, something he was more than willing to continue.

“Although this fucking shitty house seems intent on stopping me from doing just that!” he growled to himself.

With a shake of his head, he turned to the door, his weapon held loosely in his hands. There was nothing left to check out. The upstairs floor was empty. Whoever or whatever had made that noise was either hiding or long gone by means he could not yet identify.

He took a step and stopped.

A soft creaking noise was heard behind him. But the room, other than very dusty furniture, was empty. David slowly turned his head, his breath getting lodged in his throat. He wanted to rub his eyes but his fingers where holding onto his assault rifle so hard he could almost hear the weapon creak.

The rocking chair overlooking the grubby window was rocking by itself.

“Sonia!” he shouted a mere instant before the door slammed shut.

The rocking chair stopped moving in mid-rock just as his flashlight died.  
  
It was official. She absolutely hated the house! How could someone simply vanish? It made no sense! Sonia was not a rookie, she had experienced her fair share of harrowing situations on numerous occasions. She had known true fear, the kind that left a permanent mark on one’s very soul but, in all those situations, she had had a target, something tangible to defend herself against. It did not seem to be the case now. How could she fight her own paranoia? No, the real question was how to fight a damn house seemingly intent on making her go insane?

She had always been someone that was rational. Hot-headed and impulsive, sure, but not prone to flights of fancy. No, that had been Ajax. However, she knew there was true evil in this world, had seen it, had experienced it. Still, it had been an all too human evil and though the house felt wrong, she refused to believe it was due to something out of this world. It simply could not be.

No matter what she told herself, she nevertheless took the time to briefly close her eyes and whisper a quick prayer.

“Hesh! I’m done here,” she finally called out but received no reply. “Hesh?”

Sonia turned and took a step back while swallowing a gasp. She had kicked the door so hard, one hinge had broken and yet it was now completely undamaged and closed. She had watched it break open! It should not be able to even latch anymore!

She almost ran to it and tried to turn the knob. It refused to budge. No matter how hard she pulled the door remained shut.

“David!” she shouted while hitting the door hard. “David!” She heard his muffled shout mere instant before a loud noise drowned him, the walls shaking. “SHIT!”

She took a step back and tried to kick the door but to no avail. It simply did not budged.

“To fucking shit with it all!” Sonia was through playing nice! This house wanted to fuck with her? Well, it had picked on the wrong Latina!

She raised her assault rifle. She would blast door until there was nothing left but pieces of kindling. Her finger brushed against the trigger. Darkness erupted all around her.

Her flashlight had died.

She tried to calm herself. She would be of no help to Hesh if she let her fear loose. She took a deep breath, and another one. The third one, though, remained stuck in her throat. Something had just touched her. Something cold and wet had briefly traced her puckered scar.

Her screams resonated through the dark room not unlike those that had come out of the radio while her eyes became blinded by the muzzle flashes as she discharged her weapon all around herself.  
  
Riley could sense the thing in darkness coming closer, its shadow barely visible in the darkness. He whined louder, his entire body quaking in fear. He started to shuffle back towards the safety of the room he was supposed to guard. He instinctively knew he would be safe there.

He was almost to the room when a noise made him jump in fear. A shout followed by a loud bang. The screams started a moment later as well as a sound he knew well. Bullets were being fired. His Alpha was in danger!

For a brief instant, his instincts fought with his training. Part of him wanted to run away but the other part barked at him to protect his Alpha. The later easily won.

Riley turned his attention back to the thing.

His tail moved from between his legs, his head hunching into his shoulder, his hackle raised. He started to growl, the sound low and menacing, his lips pulled back to expose his teeth.

The thing in the darkness seemed to pause. He growled louder as a guttural hiss answered his challenge.

Riley let out one deep bark and lunged at the thing but, with a high-pitched screech, the door slammed shut before he could reach the thing. Nevertheless he stood there barking and growling. He would not let anything harm his Alpha!  
  
Without any warning, David’s flashlight flared back to life. He swept it around the room, its beam of light as unsteady as his heartbeat. He was ready to force feed bullets to whatever was in the room with him. However, no matter where he looked, nothing was to be seen. Even the rocking chair stood completely still, the cobwebs upon it undisturbed while the door stood partially open.

He did not take the chance it would close once more in his face and, his weapon held at the ready, he ran out of the room. He could hear Moreno scream though she was almost drowned by Riley’s furious barks. Whatever had so agitated his dog had to wait. His priority was to see to his companion.

“Sonia!” he called out rushing inside the room she had been checking out. There she was screaming hoarsely while trying to shoot her weapon but its magazine was empty. A good thing otherwise he would have been cut in two from her bullets. “Sonia! Snap out of it!” he warned grabbing her by the arms and forcing the muzzle of her assault rifle down. “Stop. There’s no more bullets.”

She finally seemed to realise he was there.

“David?” she asked. It was obvious she was badly affected by whatever had happened in this room though what, he could not tell. Whatever it was though, had truly scared her. Hell, he himself had been scared to an inch of his life back in that fucking room with that fucking rocking chair.

“There’s something in here… with me,” she said. “It— it touched me.”

David moved his flashlight around but, just like the room he had been in, there was nothing, the holes in the walls denoting she had, indeed, emptied her weapon. He turned the beam down. No blood though so she had not hit anything despite clearly shooting in every directions.

“There’s no one here right now. Come on,” he said. “I think it’s best we go back to the living room. It has supplies and is defensible compared to up here.”

David wanted to be as far from these rooms as he could. Also, he was worried about Riley, his dog’s non-stop barking unusual for him. They should have heeded him when he had refused to approached the house.

With barely a nod, Moreno shrugged his hands off her and walked past him. She appeared more steady than he was. That is, until they they passed the door.

“It was closed,” she whispered, her voice trembling. “Completely closed! But how?”

How indeed since it was barely holding by a rusty hinge. However, David refrained from answering. Nothing in this house made any sense! Though he would not say it out loud but he was now convinced that it was haunted and seeing Riley stand in front of the basement door only reinforced his belief. There was something beyond that door, something he really did not want to discover.

“Riley, heel,” he commanded, his dog automatically obeying, his wet nose briefly rubbing his hand as if he needed to reassure himself that David was hale.

Finally they were back in the living room with its much appreciated light from the hurricane lamps. He felt his tension leave. They were safe here, he was convinced of that. His relief was very short lived as he finally turned his attention to Moreno. His heart stopped beating for a moment, a chill taking hold of his very core.

On the left side of her neck, right over her puckered scar was the bloody imprint of a large hand.  



	7. Chapter 7

### Chapter Six : Holding The Fort

  


  
The house was silent though it was far from peaceful. No, it felt menacing as if a great beast was stalking them, waiting for the opportunity to pounce. Sonia knew her train of thought was not helping in calming herself down but it kept circling in her mind. The fact she and Hesh were both lost in their own musings did not help either. The house was affecting them and, after what had happened upstairs, it was unsurprising.

She could still feel the touch, the cold wetness of it, light as a feather and yet so sinister. She let out a soft shuddering breath while rubbing the blood off with a barely wet cloth. Whatever had been in the room with her had somehow known that her scar was the worst place to touch her, the one to fill her with terror. Point in fact, she had started to shoot without any thoughts, just reacting instinctively. If Hesh had arrived before she had emptied out her ammunition, he would have been killed by her own hand due to her fright. She could not let it happen again.

“Hey,” she heard this one finally say while crouching in front of her. “You—erm. You missed a spot.”

Her shoulders drooped. No matter how much she scrubbed, she simply could not wipe out the feeling of those fingers. Hesh’s hand gently grabbed hers so he could take the cloth.

“Let me?”

He could not know how much trust he was asking with that simple gesture but they were stuck here, in this infernal house. If they could not absolutely count on one another, they were as good as dead.

She slightly bent her head to the side and closed her eyes, trying her best not to jump when he touched her. His touch was just as featherlight as the other’s but, unlike it, it was gentle and soothing. He said nothing until he was finished, his fingers briefly caressing her cheek before he sat back on his heels.

“So,” he said after clearing his throat slightly. “Want to tell me what happened in that room?”

“You first,” she replied not really wanting to talk about it, at least not yet. She needed to calm herself mentally beforehand.

“Well I usually prefer it when the woman I’m with goes first but I’ll make an exception this time,” he chuckled while giving her a wink. He was obviously trying to make her feel at ease. It was working, the corners of her lips tugging upwards.

“I’ll hold you to that someday,” she teased back.

“Damn but I hope you do!” he growled softly. “But since I wouldn’t put it past this house to be a peeping tom, that’ll really have to wait for another time.”

The playfulness vanished from his eyes and, with a tired sigh, he sat down beside her so that their shoulders touched, Riley coming to lie down near their feet, the dog’s watchfulness reassuring.

“There’s really not much to say. I entered the room. It was empty except for some furniture and that fucking rocking chair.” He briefly stopped, his shoulder shuddering against hers. “It started to rock by itself and then the door slammed shut and my flashlight died. It felt like it lasted for such a long time, me just standing there in pitch darkness with the sound of that rocking growing louder and louder until it ceased. You know what’s strange though? I didn’t hear your gunshots nor heard Riley’s barks until whatever was happening in the room stopped.”

Sonia would not have minded having a rocking chair moving. Hell, it could even have flown around like a damn bird on speed for all she cared. It was far less harrowing than an entity laying its hand on her. However, it had shaken Hesh badly. There was something there.

“David? Why was it so frightening for you?” she asked.

“Promise you won’t laugh?” he replied sheepishly.

“I can promise you not to have more than a chuckle, two max.” He gave her a grateful smile though it was short-lived.

“When I was a kid, I had this friend who lived in a big house. I used to love going there and play with him. It was my refuge from home after my mom passed away. The kid though, had this big brother. One stormy day, he and his pals decided to have a bit of fun with me. Before I knew what was happening, I was locked in the attic where they had rigged some pieces of furniture with fishing line, a rocking chair amongst them. His parents found me on the floor in a foetal position bawling my eyes out. My dad was so pissed. It was the last time I ever went there, the last time I ever saw my friend or his family. That incident badly affected me for years though night terrors.”

“I would have kicked that older boy’s balls until they exploded,” she hissed coldly.

“Ah my shining pilot in a white helicopter!” he chuckled while looking at her with exaggerated devotion. “You’ll definitely be the one to dish out the discipline with our kids. I’m too soft and will cave in every time and, before we’ll know, we’ll have ten dogs, too many cats, and a damn pony.”

Sonia’s laughter echoed in the silent house, her eyes actually tearing up. She had not laughed so much in a long time.

“You, David Hesh Walker, are the silliest man I’ve ever met.”

“But it made you laugh so mission accomplished,” he chuckled while bumping his shoulder against hers. “Now, your turn?”

“There was nothing in the room when I entered. Nowhere for anyone to hide,” she retold, her voice denoting her returning tension. “I turned to leave but the door, the fucking door I had kicked open and broken was closed. I tried to open it but it simply didn’t budge. Then I heard a loud sound, the walls shaking. I guess it’s when the door of the room you were in slammed shut—” She took a deep breath. “I took a step back intent on shooting it down. That’s when I felt it. Fingers, cold and wet, touching me, touching my scar. I shot everywhere until I ran out of bullets and still I continued to pull the trigger until the moment you arrived.”

She turned her head to look at him.

“I can get with the whole haunting thing, sure, No hay ningun problema. But, Hesh, that was no ghost touching me. It had substance and yet I emptied out a full magazine and nothing. I hit nothing!” She shot up on her feet and paced the length of the living room, anything to try and shake off the chill in her very soul. The previously teasing mood was completely gone. “I think that this house is preying on our fears. How? I’ve got no fucking clue but it does.”

Hesh got up in turn, Riley briefly looking away from the living room entrance before resuming his vigilance.

“I haven’t told anyone what happened to me when I was a kid. So how did the house know? Perhaps we’re reading more into it?” he suggested. She shook her head.

“The radio,” she merely stated.

“What about it? I mean, other than atrocious screams.”

“Yeah, screams of people being burned alive, Hesh!” She waited but it did not seem to ring any bells with him. “How old are you?” she asked.

“I’m twenty-eight. Why? What about you?”

“You’re young. I’m almost ten years older than you. I’m thirty-seven.”

“Fuck! You don’t look it!”

“Thanks? Anyways, what do you know about General Almagro’s dictatorship?”

“I heard a bit about it from my dad, about when the Ghosts were tasked in assassinating him, both other than that, not much really.” he answered.

“He burned people alive, David,” she explained in a soft voice. “American citizens… and those who sheltered them. My parents were part of those. For a long time I thought the U.S. had been responsible, that they had swept through our village and had burned it to the ground. It’s only much later that I learnt the truth.” The horrified look on his face was telling.

“That’s why— when you heard. Shit! I’m so sorry, Sonia.”

“I have a phobia of being burned alive. Though I wasn’t there when it happened, I still dreamt of it, of how it could have been. The smells, the sounds, the sights. As for what happened in the room. This?” She barely traced her scar. “A parting gift from my captain back when I was with the Federation. Let’s just say he took great delight in using the serrated edge of his knife after telling me the truth about my parents’ death.” Sonia speared him with a dead serious look. “So I don’t know how but someone— something is using our own fears but for what purpose? Look around. No signs of struggle from those that were stationed here. Either they ran away or they never left the house.”  
  
What Moreno was alluding to was too chilling to even contemplate and yet it was the only speculation that made sense in some way. Granted, anyone could be scared by empty rocking chairs moving by themselves. The fact David had night terrors about it when he was a kid could have been purely coincidental. What Moreno had experienced though had been too overly personal to overlook. As for her theory on the Federation soldiers that had been here previously, he had to admit that it was entirely plausible. At least up to a point. There was no struggle, no bullet holes in the walls so either they simply left or…

He started to pace himself, anything really to keep his terror at bay.

“So we’re in a house, in the middle of a swamp with no true way to communicate with anyone,” he mused out loud trying his best to look at it in a detached manner as if he was reviewing the details of a mission. “The house is preying on our fears by whatever means for whatever purpose. We can only assume the same happened to the soldiers that had occupied the house. By the state of the MREs, they were here less than five years ago, but by the layers of dust everywhere, the house has been ‘unoccupied’ for years.” He feet took him to the doorway of the living room. “Either they left or they did not.”

“And if they didn’t then where would they be? There’s enough supplies here for a small squad. We’re not talking about two or three men,” Moreno said coming to stand beside him.

“And yet, no physical evidence of anyone although—”

“Although what?”

David was not sure he wanted to answer, his mind rebelling at the only hypothesis he could come with. By her expression, Moreno had arrived at the same conclusion but probably needed him to say it as if firmly putting in out there would make whatever was happening more tangible and thus something they could combat. They were, after all, soldiers. They needed a target.

“Although we haven’t looked either in the attic or the basement,” he finally said. “If I had to hazard a guess as to where that squad could be, I’d say either those places though I wouldn’t hold my breath to find any still alive.” He hesitated for a moment. “Actually, something else happened to me,” he finally admitted. “While you were checking out the house, I heard you calling out to me. From the basement. The door was opened. If it hadn’t for Riley, I probably would have gone down there thinking you needed my help.”

“Wait, you mean someone called out to you and it sounded like me?”

“Yeah, called me by name even,” he answered. Moreno hissed something in her native language, most probably a virulent curse.

“So that means we can’t even trust our own senses. The fucking house is toying with us!” He watched her make a beeline towards where the supplies were stashed. “How far you think we need to get away from this house to be safe?” she asked while loading up on ammunitions.

“Not that much if I go by how Riley reacted when we sent him to scout the house. He was fine until he came near the stairs,” he answered.

“Good, I don’t think we’d be able to get far anyway now that night has fallen and that’s without counting on the storm. Still, I don’t know about you but I like my chances better out there than in here.”

David almost shouted ‘Amen!’ at that. Spending the night huddled somewhere risking infection was better than staying here. Hell, getting chewed on by crocodiles was loads more appealing than whatever the house had planned for them.

“We should try and bring as much supplies as we can,” he said going to help her. “We don’t know how long we’ll be stuck in the swamp.”

“Hopefully the base got my distress signal but we’ll worry about that once we’re away from here. I still got the helicopter’s radio so we might be able to establish a line of communication.”

They quickly gathered as much supplies as they could carry without hampering them. Not soon enough for his taste they were finally ready to leave this house, Moreno once more taking point, her assault rifle held in shooting stance, safety off, muzzle up. He had to admire her determination, of being able to push aside what could only have been a highly traumatic experience and focus on the task ahead.

The distance between the living room and the front door was only a few feet and yet it seemed farther than that as if the house had somehow expanded. It was also much darker than he remembered. The beam from their military grade flashlights barely strong enough to light the foyer. One quick look reassured David that the basement door was still firmly closed though the shadows around it unnerved him. The faster they were out, the better he would feel.

“Mierda!”

He turned his attention back to Moreno, his heart seizing in his chest. She was tugging hard on the front door but it did not seem to want to budge.

“Is it locked?” he asked. “Have you tried to unlock it!” He could hear the low tinge of panic in his own voice.

“It’s not fucking locked! It just won’t open! It’s like something strong is keeping it from opening.”

“Here, let me try,” he suggested but all she did was snarl before trying to kick the door down. Her foot barely connected with the door that Riley started to growl menacingly. “Riley what—?” The rest of the question died on his lips.

The basement door was fully open.

“Sonia,” he whispered. “We’d best get back to the living room.”

She was not listening to him so intent she was on kicking the front door down yet no matter the force she used, it did not even crack.

“Living room, NOW!” he shouted when a denser shadow emerged from the basement. Whatever it was, it felt malevolent.

Acting on pure instincts, David grabbed Moreno around the waist and pulled her with him back into what he hoped was a safe place, if there was such a thing in this house from hell while Riley stood between them and the dark presence, his growl actually making his hair stood on end. Never had he seen his dog look so fearsome. It was as if his German Shepherd had suddenly turned into a feral wolf. Whatever the case, it was actually buying them time, as if the thing that had emerged from the basement was hesitating.

“Riley, heel!” he shouted, this one backing up towards him. As soon as he was passed the threshold, David slammed the two wooden doors shut and quickly dragged a heavy coffee table in front of them for good measure. Not that he had any delusion that it would impede whatever lived at the core of the house.

He slowly backed away from the doors, his assault rifle held steady. He saw Moreno take a crouched position near him. He did not think bullets would stop the thing but he was more than willing to put it to the test should it try to breach their relative sanctity.

Nothing happened, just a heavy silence broken only by Riley’s low growl.

He knew it was just beyond those doors, skulking about in the darkness, waiting for them to let down their guard. He could sense it, feel it in his very bones. That malignant feeling which froze one’s blood, the stuff nightmares were made of. They stood motionless, tensed, expecting the doors to be ripped apart until Riley let out a huff while lying down. The tension drained from David’s shoulders. The thing had left. They were safe. At least for the time being although they were now well and truly stuck inside with whatever horror haunted the house.  
  
“What the fuck was that?!” Sonia asked keeping her voice barely above a whisper despite the fact Hesh had lowered his weapon. She, on the other hand, was still crouched in combat position, her gaze locked on the closed double doors. She was wound tighter than a two dollar watch, afraid of even blinking as if whatever had come at them would suddenly appear in front of her.

“I will hazard a guess and say it wasn’t a stray cat,” Hesh chuckled humorously.

The man sounded scared but, then again, so was she. In truth, she had never felt so much terror as when she had finally seen what had been coming at them. She had lived through her fair shares of bloody battles but this thing? No, this was beyond anything she had ever experienced, so much so her mind absolutely refused to try and analyse what she had seen.

“I don’t know what it was, Sonia, all I know is that it came from the basement.”

“Well then that’s one place I definitely won’t go!” she replied with a hiss. It took all her willpower to finally look away from the doors. “What does it want, other than keeping us captive in this house?”

“Your guess is as good as mine, really. It want to feed on our fears? Something more sinister than that? I’m not rightly inclined in going to knock on the basement door and ask.”

Whatever it wanted, Sonia was not willing to wait and see. Giving the living room a quick glance over, automatically dismissing the fireplace, she finally got up from her crouched stance and made a beeline towards one of the tall windows.

“What are you doing?” Hesh asked.

“Getting us out of here one way or the other,” she growled lifting her Remington R5 before slamming its butt against the window. She heard the glass shatter, the closed drapes preventing the shards from raining down on her, and then a strange sort of muffled sound, her assault rifle bouncing off something. “What the fuck?!”

She pushed the thick curtains off and simply stood there, her mind in total denial. The window shutters were tightly closed and, like the front door, refused to either budge or break.

With a screech that would probably shame a Banshee, Sonia grabbed a grenade.

“WHOA!” Hesh shouted jumping forward and grabbing her hands before she could unpin it. “Let’s not do anything that would, oh I don’t know, kill us? That’s a frag grenade. It _might_ blast through the shutters but we won’t be alive to actually dance in celebration!”

She briefly closed her eyes and took a deep breath. She was losing it and that scared her more than the house.

“Qué pena contigo, David,” she whispered letting him take the grenade from her trembling hands.

“Hey, look at me.” She felt his warm fingers lightly cup the right side of her face. “Unless I’ve mistaken this as an apology of some kind and not you telling me to go fuck myself with this frag grenade, it’s not your fault, alright? It’s this house.”

“It’s no reason for me to put your life in danger. I was supposed to protect you during this mission and what did I do instead? Make us crash in the middle of a swamp and then bring us here in this fucking house!” she snarled pushing his hand away.

“Hey, I never expected you to ‘protect’ me, Sonia. I may not have been a Ghost for long but I’m a good soldier,” he retorted with a frown.

“That’s not what I meant, David. I know you’re a good soldier and, frankly, I’m glad you’re here. I don’t think I would have been able to withstand it all if you weren’t. It’s just… you’re Elias’ son.”

“Bah! He’s got a spare son if anything happens to me,” he replied tongue in cheek.

Sonia’s snort turned into a chuckle, Hesh joining until they were both laughing uncontrollably. It felt good after everything that had happened as if, by the simple act of laughing, the house’s clutch upon them was lessening. He was the one to recover first, his gaze not quite meeting hers.

“The same can’t be said about Merrick, though. I mean, there’s only one of you.”

She knew the subject would eventually be raised especially after flirting the way they had. She did not like to talk about her relationship with Thomas Merrick. So much of what they were for one another was wrapped in complications but she felt that she owed Hesh the truth. At least, up to an extent.

“Thomas and I have… a very complicated relationship,” she explained after a brief sigh.

“So you guys are a thing? A couple?”

“A thing, sure. A couple, not really. Like I said, it’s complicated. Whatever we had, it’s pretty much in the past. Were we lovers? Yes we were, on and off. Was there any romantic attachment? Not the kind people think. I respect him, I implicitly trust him, I do care about him but I don’t love him. Not him.”

Too late Sonia realised that she had revealed more than she had planned, things only Merrick knew. That was the problem with Hesh. He was too easy to talk to, to confide in. By the look he gave her, he had easily connected the dots.

“Not him, huh. Ajax,” he whispered. She had to bite the inside of her cheek hard to stop the tears from pooling in her eyes.

“Ajax was—” She cleared her throat. “He was one of a kind. A great guy. Merrick saved my life but Ajax… he’s the one who saved my sanity. He was also married. I may be a fucking bitch but not the kind to break up a marriage.” And that, despite what Ajax had insinuated more than once.

“So what you’re telling me is that Merrick would not blow my brains out if I was to ask you out on a date?” Hesh asked with a ravishing smile. He was quite obviously changing the subject away from Ajax. Something which she was more than grateful. His death was still too raw for her. But she was good at pushing agony deep down and forge ahead.

“Not if I was interested. He’s protective to a fault but he knows he has no claim to me just as I don’t have any on him,” she answered.

“And? Are you? Interested, I mean?”

Sonia let her hand drag down his chest, her gaze fixed on him, her smile turning sultry.

“David, if you don’t ask me on a date as soon as we get back, _I_ will be the one blowing your brains out.”

He bent his head down, the huskiness of his laugh making her heart skip a beat. It was a mistake, a very familiar mistake but she just did not give a fuck anymore. Merrick was too tied up with her feelings for Ajax. Hesh, on the other hand, was not.

“Well, when you put it that way, how can I refuse?” he whispered, his hot breath tickling her lips.

A crash upstairs made them jump apart.

“This _fucking_ house!” David raged. “I swear it’s doing it on purpose!”

For a brief blessedly moment, they had forgotten their predicament.  
  
The house was pure evil, there was just no other explanation. It did seem to take great pleasure in interrupting, for a second time now, what had been an interesting development. Already Moreno was more open with him, had confided things to him that he was sure very few knew. David had meant it. He was intent on asking her out if, no when they got back to the base.

Another crash was heard, louder this time as if the house was impatient in having them go and investigate.

“I don’t care if they’re having a raving fiesta upstairs, I am not falling for the same trick twice,” Moreno growled. He could not agree more. “Fuck, they can have a ghost orgy and still I wouldn’t budge from here.”

“Actually, that sounds sort of intriguing,” he mused playfully making her roll her eyes at him.

“Men!” she groaned. “All the same. Just raise the idea of sex and off they go. Go ahead, Hesh. I certainly won’t stop you if you want to go watch or participate.”

“Nah! I much prefer staying here with you and make our own sort of orgy,” he teased back. All he got as an answer was a slight slap on the shoulder.

“Qué boludo! I think you hit your head harder than I thought,” she said with a clack of her tongue before putting a hand on his chest and pushing him slightly. “Sit down. Since we’re stuck for the time being, I might as well clean your wound and change your bandage, something I should have done the moment we got inside.”

David knew better than to argue with the woman and dutifully sat down on the floor, his back resting against a crate. He was bone tired, the constant state of fear since they had entered the house almost debilitating. He was not a man prone to fright, the harshness of the war they were fighting having desensitised him to most horror. That is until he had stepped inside this fucking nightmare. It was as if whatever was haunting the house was ramping up their fear. But to what purpose? To feed on it? To drive them mad and thus easier to pick?

His train of thought flew away the moment Moreno straddled him.

“Don’t fidget,” she told him but it was hard for him not to, his pants already becoming too tight. By her cattish smile, the damn woman knew the effect she was having. “Don’t worry, I’ll try not to hurt you too badly.”

He was of a mind to tell her she could hurt him to her heart’s content if she would just move a bit forward on his lap but all he was able to do was hiss softly when she unwound the bandage off his forehead. What had become a dull ache flared back up in intensity with a pounding vengeance.

“The cut isn’t infected so that’s good. But, it’s still swollen and, I’m afraid, you might end up with a permanent scar.”

“I don’t mind. Scars are cool,” he said. Moreno put her hands on the crate beside his head and bent slightly forward, her chest almost touching his.

“Really?” she asked in a husky voice.

David had to swallow as his throat had become quite dry.

“Yeah,” he finally answered. “They are.”

“Even on women?”

“Especially on women.” His voice had taken on a growling quality.

“Good to know.” That said, she sat back and proceeded to clean his wound.

“I’m warning you in advance. I want more than one kid,” he told her. That earned him a cocked eyebrow. “Yeah. And I want girls.”

“Girls? Not boys? I thought men all wanted sons.”

“No, I want girls so I can raise them to be badasses. This world definitely needs more women like you, Sonia.”

“You, Hesh, have a weird way of flirting,” she laughed.

“What can I say? You, Wrecker, brings out the romantic in me,” he countered.

“How am I able to resist you when you use such amazing techniques of seduction?”

With a sarcastic roll of her eyes, Moreno dressed his wound and started to bandage him once again. The way she was straddling him put her chest tantalisingly in near his face, his gaze zeroing on her breasts. His pants were now so painfully tight that he did not know which hurt more, his erection or his head.

“Should I change technique then?” he asked softly. “Perhaps something more in this style?”

He bent his head, his tongue travelling along the edge of her shirt, up her collarbone. The texture of her skin changed from smooth to puckered as he licked past her scar. He felt her tense but he did not stop nor did he hesitate until he reached just below her ear. By that time, her hips had shifted forward rubbing against his hard length.

“Better?” he whispered against her ear before biting its lobe.

“Much, much better,” she replied with a moan, the sound of it making David burn with lust. He grabbed the back of her neck though the growl that echoed in the room was not coming from him nor from her.

Riley was up and pacing in front of the barricaded doors.

“What—?” Moreno whispered turning her attention to the dog.

Something hit the doors hard enough to crack the wooden door frame. Despite knowing it was what the house wanted, he could not stop his fear from spiking, his hand reaching for his assault rifle.

“David?”

He jumped, his gaze unable to move away from the doors despite the fact nothing further happened. Even Riley was settling back down once again.

“David,” Moreno repeated. “Your turn to do me.”

He turned attention from the doors so fast it was a miracle he did not get a whiplash.

“Wait—what?” he babbled not sure he had heard her correctly.

“The wound on my arm? Clean and change the bandage?” Her lips curled into a smirk. “What did you think I meant, hmm?”

He thought it was best to keep his mouth shut about it all. He knew she was goading him but it had had the effect of making him think about something else than whatever was lurking on the other sides of the doors, something that truly did not like them to feel anything other than fear. But though he felt the deviant desire to provoke the house by kissing Moreno the way he craved to do, the blood-drenched bandage on her left arm was more pressing than anything else.

“You’ll have to move a bit,” he said, swallowing a groan when she half twisted on his lap.

He took a moment to compose himself, mentally shouting at his body to curb its libido, before slowly unwinding the bandage off her arm, cringing slightly at feeling the resistance. He tried to be as gentle as possible but he simply had to peel it off, the wound starting to bleed anew as the crust of dried blood came away with the bandage. Moreno did not flinch though he saw her jaw briefly clenched. Still, she remained where she was, sitting cross legged between his own legs.

“I’m sorry,” he whispered but she only clacked her tongue at him. Wetting a gauze, he lightly cleaned the wound of the remaining crusted blood, a hiss escaping his lips.

“That bad?” she asked.

“It’s… well, I think it’s infected and there’s not enough antiseptic,” he replied. His hands were shaking. He felt fear once again but for a much different reason.

“There’s some Vodka over there. Just dump it on the wound.”

“It’ll hurt.”

She snorted brusquely.

“I imagine it will but you know as well as I that in certain circumstances, we have to made do. I’d say this was one of those. Don’t worry, I can take the pain.”

David wanted to argue but she was right. They had to make do with what they had which was not much and, with no hope of a rescue anytime soon, he could only hope it would be enough to stave off a worst infection.

He got up but quickly crouched down in alarm.

Scratching as if something with claws was pacing in the room right over the living room.

Once again, the damn house was manifesting itself. He had no time for its fucking mind games, not when there was a more pressing matter, mainly making sure Moreno did not develop sepsis.

The scratching intensified followed by thumps loud enough to make the walls shake. He continued to ignore it as he retrieved the Vodka bottle. He found it weird that soldiers had booze as part of their supplies. Even back on the base, alcohol was tightly regulated. They were at war after all. Something about it was nagging at him but he merely brushed it aside. There was more pressing matter.

“Ready?” he asked settling back down beside her. “You need anything to hold to for the pain or—”

An unearthly screech made him drop the bottle, half its content spilling on the floor. What he felt right then was far from fear.

“Shut the FUCK UP!” he fairly roared making both Moreno and Riley look at him with almost identical shock. “I’ve had it with this fucking madhouse!”

The screech completely died out, the house settling once more into a heavy silence though David knew it was merely biding its time, watching them, trying to find a way to make them crack. Still, it was a reprieve of some sort.

“As I was saying, you need anything to hold for the pain or to bite into?” he asked. Moreno slowly shook her head. He took a deep breath and tipped the bottle over the bleeding gash.

“Hijo de _puta_!” she yelled, her eyes tightly closed, her hands fisted on her lap. He could heard her ragged breath.

“I’m so sorry,” he whispered trying his best to be as gentle as he could while knowing all he did was add more pain. “That should do it.” He hesitated for a moment. “It’s a deep gash though and there’s nothing I can close it with.” He mentally prayed she did not suggest he find a needle and a thread to sew her himself. The prospect of going down the basement was more alluring than doing that.

“Just bandage it again. It shouldn’t be closed up as long as there’s some infection remaining anyway,” she said making him breathe a temporal silent sigh of relief.

By the time he was done, she looked on the verge of collapsing, her face pale and clammy, her breath irregular. Silently, David settled himself once more against the crate and pulled her in his embrace being careful of her left arm.

“Come on, rest a bit,” he told her. “Me and Riley will keep watch.”

“Remind me to get him a big thick juicy steak when we get back to the base for being such a good boy,” she mumbled, Riley letting out a soft ‘woof’, his tail banging on the floor.

“Oh, don’t worry, he’ll make sure you don’t forget,” he chuckled, looking down when she did not reply. Her eyes were closed. She looked fragile in sleep though he knew she was anything but.

David rested his head against the crate. Who would have thought that he needed to be stuck in a haunted house to finally find a woman he could see himself falling for?  



	8. Chapter 8

### Chapter Seven : Whispers In The Dark

  


  
Why was no one raising the alarm? Could it be they had not yet found the two unconscious MPs back in the hospital? She always thought Americans were a force to reckon with but she was fast changing her mind seeing how lax their security was. If they had been Federation, her dumb ass would have already been in a cell awaiting torture to retrieve information. Whatever the case, Sonia was determined to take full advantage of their negligence.

Now if she could only find a way to get onto the heliport and steal a bird without being gunned down the moment her enemy ass was seen.

Crouching behind some cargo, she tracked the movement of the soldiers between her and her goal, the slight shifting of her head making her swallow back a whimper as the fresh stitches pulled. The agonising pain flaring from the left side of her neck was almost enough to make her pass out. Damn that bastard Sosa! She would go and deal with him as soon as she was successful in escaping this U.S. military base before they could make her a prisoner.

She should have known better than to help those Americans! Granted, they had saved her neck, literally, but now here she was stuck deep behind enemy lines. But were they enemies? She had stopped being Federation when Sosa branded her a traitor and tried to execute her. No, now that she knew the truth about what had happened to her parents, nothing would ever make her go back! She was now a soldier without a nation, a mercenary that would bring retribution upon the Federation!

Well, as soon as she was able to steal a helicopter, that is.

“You make it much too easy to find you,” someone suddenly chuckled behind her.

Disregarding the pain, Sonia sharply turned, the knife she had taken from one of the MPs expertly held in her hand. She had not wanted a physical confrontation but she would not be taken prisoner. She would not put herself into the same situation as with Sosa!

The man easily blocked her attack and, with a twist of his wrist, was able to get the knife from her hand. He did not counterattack though. All he did was cross his arms over his chest in a nonchalant manner, his dark brown eyes studying her, waiting for her next move. He was a tall, athletically built African American. She could not see any signs of ranks on him but his stance was one of command. He was no mere soldier. She was no match for him and the bastard knew it. However, he was not counting on the fact she would prefer death than to be taken prisoner.

“Don’t even try. You’re badly wounded. Plus Scarecrow will have my hide if you bleed out before hearing his offer.”

“Do you think I’m a dumb chica, güevas?” she snarled. “As if I’d believe anything an American says!”

“Well this American says that you were a bit dumb to come here to the heliport. Come on. You’re an helicopter pilot so the first place anyone would look is here. Now, if it had been me, I’d have tried to steal something completely different than a bird. A tank, maybe?” he replied with a chuckle.

He had a point. That only made her more pissed off.

“Despégala pues!”

“Well that’s a new one. Never heard it before and I’ve heard more than my fair share of insults out of Federation soldiers.” He actually gave her a roguish wink. “Come on. Scarecrow wants you back in the hospital until you recover from your injuries.”

She did not move one muscle, her stance ready for attack.

“Relax, Wrecker, we’re not your enemy.” He let out a sigh while shaking his head. “Guess I actually have to prove it to you then.”

Sonia tensed up when he took out something from his pocket. A mask, a black mask with a white skull. Her gasp was so loud it was a wonder no one heard it on the heliport. Three men wearing those had been the ones to save her from Sosa.

“Like I said, we’re not your enemy. I’m Alex Johnson but everyone calls me Ajax.”

  


  
Sonia woke up with a silent whimper. The burning pain in her neck shifting to her left arm. It had been just a dream, a dream of the day she had met Ajax while hiding behind some cargo like a stowaway. Reliving the past was painful enough but it was more so when it was about Ajax. It only made her feel his death even more.

At least, this time, she had not been thrashing in her sleep. She usually did whenever she was pulled back to that day with Sosa. Still, she was surprised she had not woken Merrick up, the man’s warm body pressed against her back, his arm draped over her waist, his hand resting against her stomach in his usual possessive manner. He was normally a much lighter sleeper than that and never failed to wake up an instant after she herself did.

Looking at her watch and seeing there were still a few hours before dawn, she closed her eyes intent on going back to sleep only to reopen them.

Something was wrong! This wasn’t Merrick’s room! Where the fuck was she?

A thump followed by eerie moans made her look up at the ceiling. The pain she had felt at dreaming of Ajax transformed into fear.

She was in that fucking house! She had just woken up from a dream only to find herself in a waking nightmare.

But Merrick was not the one stuck in the house with her…

She sat up with a hissed curse.

“What—?” Hesh mumbled rubbing his eyes.

“Didn’t you say you were going to keep watch?” she hissed. “Unless the definition drastically changed, I don’t think cuddling up to me while I’m sleeping is how it’s supposed to go!”

She knew she was using this as an excuse to vent through her confused emotions. Fear of what was lurking in the shadows of the house, her growing attraction to Hesh which would most probably turn as unhealthy as her relationship with Merrick, all fuelled her anger until it was a palpable thing. And behind it all, the pain of losing Ajax, a wound she tried valiantly not to think about, pretending it was not there as if he was merely on an extended mission.

“I fell asleep. I’m sorry,” Hesh said with a sheepish voice while sitting up. He seemed to take great care not to touch her. “I guess I got lulled to sleep by how silent and still the house was.”

“Yeah well it’s not silent anymore,” she snapped back.

The sounds came once more, the two of them slowly getting up from the floor. Though Sonia was pretty sure bullets would do nothing, she nevertheless grabbed her Remington R5. She would much rather have a useless weapon than being without one at all.

“Does that sound like—”

“Don’t you fucking dare say it, Hesh!” she warned.

“— zombies to you?”

The bumps turned into shuffling noises, the moans more pronounced. It was a sound straight out of George Romero’s movie.

“Do you think it could be the soldiers that were based here?” Hesh asked in a low voice.

“Shut up! Just shut the fuck up already! You’re just giving the house ideas! You dumb güevas!”

“Would you have preferred I think of the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man instead?!”

She tried to count to ten but barely reached three before she clacked her tongue.

“Yes, Hesh. Being squished to death by a huge marshmallow mascot is so much better than being gnawed on by the walking dead!”

She took a deep breath. She had to get a grip on herself. None of it was his fault. She was the one who had put them in this situation.

“Listen,” she said after a moment. “I’m sorr—”

Something hit the living room doors hard. It sounded like hands slapping against them. Riley started to growl, the sound almost drowned from the moans. They exchanged a horrified look. Surely it was the house trying to fuck with them by using Hesh’s zombies reference. Then again, if, like them, the Federation soldiers had been prevented from leaving, where were they, where were their corpses? Surely they had not been reanimated. Then again, remembering the thing that had touched her when they were investigating the upstairs rooms, she could not discard the notion no matter how impossible and horrific it was.

“What are you doing?” Hesh asked her.

“Opening the damn doors, what does it look like?” she retorted pushing the heavy table away that acted as a barricade.

“I can see that. What I’m wondering is are you fucking nuts?! We don’t know what’s on the other side of those doors!”

“Yes, Hesh, yes I am fucking nuts! Now, are you going to stand there and gawk or are you going to help me?” She was fairly snarling at that point. “The way I look at it, either we stay huddled in here in fright or we actually act like the fucking Ghosts that we are and deal with whatever is banging on the doors. Just remember one thing. If it is, indeed, the walking dead, double tap to the head.”

Sonia was trying to act brave, to be like Merrick, Ajax, and Keegan would be in a similar situation but, deep down, she was terrified. Nevertheless, she knew they could not just continue to hide in the relative safety of the living room. Not only was the confinement getting to her, but her gut told her that the entity’s attack would grow in intensity with every passing hours closer to dawn.

She hesitated for a moment, indecision gnawing at her. Would the coming morning free them? Was the house active only during nighttime like most horror flicks portrayed? Was it so ill-advised to wait until dawn? But what if nothing changed? What if they were still stuck and prisoner in this hell?

She looked to Hesh and, seeing the look of determination in his face and his ready fighting stance, she sent a quick prayer up to the Heavens before throwing the doors wide open, crouching at the same time, her assault rifle in firing position, her finger steady on the trigger.

Nothing but the darkness of the foyer met her gaze.  
  
It made no sense! David was sure he had seen the doors shake from the pounding and that, merely a moment before Moreno had opened them. There was no way whatever had been on the other side to disappear so fast unless they had never truly been there. Spirits? But if so, why had one of them been able to touch Moreno but a few hours ago?

He hated not knowing what they were facing. It was worst than going into a Federation base completely blind especially since Logan was not with them! How he wished his brother had accompanied them on this FUBAR mission! He was the more level-headed of the both of them, often using logistic reasoning to unplanned situations. Then again, Logan would have seen the telling signs and would have not set foot in this damn house. Quite unlike them. What a pair he and Moreno made. Both hot-headed, both preferring to rush into situations with guns blazing.

He lowered his weapon but a hiss from Moreno made him raise it once more.

“There’s something out there,” he heard her say from her crouched position in front of the opened doors, Riley standing beside her, his hackle raised, his growls deep and menacing.

“Can you identify it?”

“No, just shadows moving against the darkness, lurking near and yet staying away from the threshold. Almost imperceptible,” came the hushed answer.

Shadows, plural. When they had tried to leave, David had seen but one. He did not like being faced with not one entity but multiple ones. The thought was enough to make a cold shiver travel down his back, his good resolution to show and feel no fear melting away faster than snow on a hot Californian day.

“What should—” A raised fist made him clamp his mouth shut. Moreno’s head was tilted slightly to the side as if she was listening to something.

“Can you hear it?” she finally asked after a long moment. “Whispers. I can’t quite make them out.”

David started to shake his head but then stopped. Now that she had mentioned it, he too could hear something and, like her, he could not quite understand what the whispers said. It was unnerving.

“Maybe we should just close the doors and barricade ourselves once more until morning,” he suggested.

“And then what? What if nothing changes in the morning? What if whatever those things are, decide to truly attack us? What then, Hesh?” Moreno fairly snarled back.

“I don’t know! I just— Fuck it all! I just want to get back to the base and fucking ask you out on a date, alright?” he yelled in return. “Instead, here we are, getting at each other’s throats, stuck in a fucking house who seem determined to scare the shit out of us!” The fear he felt once again turn to anger. He was of a mind to start shooting recklessly into the foyer. It would most probably not do anything but it would at least make him feel better.

Without warning, he let out one shot, the detonation almost obscenely loud. Riley stopped growling to look at him, his head fully tilted, Moreno almost mirroring him. He ignored them both.

“Take that, you motherfucker!” he yelled, his finger tensing to pull the trigger again.

“Dav—David—”

With a shocked shout, he brought his Remington R5 up, the bullets following the arc making plaster dust rain down on his head.

No! He had heard wrong! He had to have heard wrong! It could not have been Logan calling out to him in agony!

“David. I’m hit. Help,” he heard his brother groan.

He had shot his own brother!

“Logan? LOGAN!” he yelled rushing towards the foyer. He was stopped by Moreno who put herself in his path. “I’ve got to get to my brother!”

“No. He’s not here. He can’t be here!” she argued. A part of him knew she was right but he had heard him. If there was one person he could tell by just the sound of a voice was his own brother. He could not take the chance that it was an illusion.

“I— I just need to make sure.”

“Think for a minute! That’s exactly what this fucking house wants. Didn’t you say that when we arrived, something tried to make you go down the basement? Just fucking think!”

“But what if they found us? Logan and the rest? You did send a distress signal after all!” Still she did not move. He tried to get past her but she once again stepped in front of him.

“Stand down, Hesh,” she warned. “Use your damn fucking head! We would have heard them enter the house. They would have called out. It is NOT your brother!”

“How can you be sure? Maybe the house made it so we didn’t hear anything!” he raged, his mind shouting at him to go to his brother whom he could still hear call out in pain.

Oh God! He had shot Logan! He had shot his younger brother! He had to get to him!

“I’m warning you, Hesh. Stand down,” she reinstated but he disregarded her. “That’s an order, Sergeant Walker!”

That brought him short. Her voice held such a commanding tone that he found himself automatically obeying the order.

“David… oh God! I’m bleeding out!”

He turned to face Moreno, his jaw clenched tightly in rage.

“You’re not a U.S. officer. You have no authority to give me orders,” he hissed. “You’re nothing but a damn mercenary.”  
  
It seemed the house, or whatever force was behind all the incidents they had been experiencing, had finally grown tired of trying to scare them the ‘good ol’ fashion way’ and had, instead, gone straight for their most inner fears. Apparently, for Hesh, it was the thought of losing his brother, something that could become reality every time they went out on missions. The fact he was made to believe he had shot this one only added to the horror of it all. Sonia could not blame him for what he had said. After all, she had heard it more than enough times since joining the Ghosts. It was not like it was not true. She was a mercenary, had been one for years now. Though many spat at her for being one, she had never regretted her decision in accepting Elias’ offer. She owed the man so much. She would not let his son get taken by a damn house.

“Yes, David, I am a mercenary, a good one too. Probably even one of the best. Ghosts accept nothing less in their ranks and, unless I’m mistaken, you’re a Ghost now, sí?”

He slowly nodded his head while judiciously keeping his silence.

“Then start acting like one ‘cause right now, you’re being a mewling soldier who’s on the front line for the first time and can’t think straight!” She took a deep breath to try and calm herself. “I’ve seen too many of those soldiers die needlessly because they rushed in recklessly. That’s not your brother. They wouldn’t have come into the house without us knowing about it.”

“Maybe they were doing a recon of the house,” he argued.

“Hesh, I would know for the simple reason that Thomas would absolutely be a part of a recovery mission if I’m the one needing to be recovered.” Their relationship might be completely fucked up and bordering on unhealthy but Sonia could always depend on Merrick. Always.

“Ah yes! And you are so close to Merrick that you would sense him nearby, huh!” Hesh spat angrily. “And here I thought you were only fucking him because you couldn’t with Ajax—” She saw the look of horror and instant regret cross his face moments before her fist connected with it.

He was lucky she had only hit him and not shot him though the temptation was strong. He had plunged the knife into a very painful wound. He had wanted to hurt her with his words and he had fully achieved that. She turned away from him in disgust and made a beeline to where the military supplies were.

“Oh God! I’m sorry! Sonia, I’m so sorry! I shouldn’t have said that! I didn’t mean it, I swear!” she heard him plead but she ignored him as she grabbed what she had been looking for.

Still not saying one word, she went back to the living room entrance and activated the two ChemLight glow sticks she had taken before throwing them into the foyer, one landing near the front door, the other closer to the staircase.

The denser shadows seemed the writhe before melting away from the bright green glow.

The hallway was deserted. No wounded Logan was to be found, no waiting rescue from the Ghosts, nothing but darkness and emptiness.

“I could have sworn I heard him. It was his voice. How can it duplicated his voice enough to fool me?!” Hesh whispered brokenly.

“The house is trying to tear us apart, to make us go at each other’s throat,” she said curtly. “It tried to divide us. Almost succeeded too.”

“But for what purpose? What could it gain from making us go against the other?”

Sonia pointed towards the basement door. It stood open like a maw waiting to swallow them.

“To separate us like upstairs? We’re easier targets alone than together. But I’m not claiming to be an expert on this damn house,” she replied. “Would you have gone to the basement if you truly thought Logan was there?”

He did not need to answer, the terrified realisation on his face was more than telling.

“I—I’m so sorry.”

“Save it,” she snapped. “We’ve got to figure out what—”

Her mouth snapped shut, her heart thudding in her chest. No she had heard wrong!

“Sonia,” a voice called out. It was strained, as if the person was in mental anguish.

“Wait. I know that voice. I’m sure I heard it before,” Hesh whispered.

She licked her lips and tried to swallow past her dried throat.

“It’s Ajax,” she finally said, her voice breaking despite herself.

“Sonia, darling. Where are you?”

Hesh gently grabbed her by the shoulders and forced her to look at him.

“Sonia, he’s dead. He can’t be here,” he told her. “I was there when he died. Don’t let it get to you!”

Snarling like a savage beast, Sonia wrenched herself free from his grasp, her Remington R5 clattering down on the floor in the process. Disregarding his shout, she stomped towards the opened door, Ajax’s voice become more alluring, pulling her towards him.

She stopped right at the entrance and looked down into the total void of darkness. She felt no fear, only a burning rage. In fact, she had never felt this angry in her entire life.

“You think you’ve found how to get to me?” she yelled to no one in particular, her voice echoing in the now silent house. “You really think that making me believe Ajax is down there would make me happily join him?” She was screaming so loudly now that her throat felt raw. “You really don’t know me or him!”

She ripped the pin off the frag grenade she had taken at the same time as the ChemLight and flicked the the lever off.

“Despégala pues, you fucking piece of shit!”

She threw the grenade down the stairs.  
  
David was not fast enough to stop Moreno from going to the basement. He hated what he had said to her, hated that he had tried to hurt her, hated that he had been able to. She had only tried to prevent him from doing something stupid and how had he repaid her? By using the trust she had shown him. He would not let her put her life in danger just because he had been an asshole.

He tried to go to her but Riley was suddenly in his way, almost making him trip on him. He tried to push him away but the dumb mutt simply did not move aside.

He heard Moreno shout something, his blood freezing at seeing her barely a breath away from the basement. What if the entity somehow grabbed her and pulled her into whatever hell was down there? If it did, would he have the courage to try and rescue her? The question was not even worth asking. He would go through anything the house could throw at him to reach her, to save her.

If only his damn dog would let him!

Grabbing this one by the scruff, he forcefully push him aside and turned toward Moreno. There she stood, proud and defiant while facing the void that was the basement. Something in her hand glinted in his flashlight’s beam. It was a grenade pin! Shit!

“Sonia!” he shouted mere moment before a loud detonation reverberated throughout the house, the floor shaking under his feet.

He barely had a moment to throw himself towards Moreno whose body was flying backward, his arms grabbing her. Never had he been so grateful for the years of training he had had with the military as he was able to remain on his feet despite the fact she was no tiny woman.

“I got you,” he kept repeating though she did not answer, her body lax in his arms. “Sonia—?”

A loud screech seemed to rock the very foundation of the house, the basement door being ripped from its hinges at the same time as the front door slammed open. David did not think twice. In fact, he did not even try to grab any weapons. He threw Moreno’s faint body over his shoulder and ran straight towards the entrance, Riley already there waiting for them.

He was barely passed the threshold that the door banged shut. A moment later and it would have closed in its face. Still, he did not stop running, wanting to put as much distance between themselves and that house of horror.

David had no idea where he was going, the night pitch dark, the rain battering against his face. He could only hope his footing would stay on solid ground, muddied as it was, and not leading him into the swamp area.

He ran until his legs and lungs burned. His panicked mind kept pushing him onward but his strength was weaning fast, the combination of what he had gone through in that house, his head injury, and an almost empty stomach finally getting the better of him. It was either he stopped or he fell down. He opted for the first one, Riley stopping beside him, his flank snug against his leg. His dog had most probably saved their lives. Had he not had stopped him from reaching Moreno, the blast from the grenade would have hit them both and, as such, would have prevented them from leaving the house.

“Sonia had the right of it,” he said. “As soon as we’re back at the base, you’re going to the the bigger piece of steak I can get my hands on. Fuck it, I’ll even wrap it in bacon.”

Riley let out a loud woof as if he was totally agreeing with him.

“But first, we need to find a place where we can hole up for the rest of the night and not risk drowning.”

Once again, his dog barked and started to move away from him only to bark again. It seemed he wanted David to follow him. After discovering how clever Riley was, he did not hesitate and let him lead. Hopefully, a dog’s vision was better than a human because he could not see farther than a few inches in front of him, having to rely on Riley’s barks to guide him.

Finally, after walking longer than he thought he would be able to while carrying a still unconscious Moreno, pulling the strength from reserves he did not know he had, he found himself in a denser area where trees grew closer together. Their canopies afforded a small protection from the rain, not much but enough that he did not feel he was on the verge of drowning while standing up.

It was not the ideal place but he simply could not take another step, his body threatening to shut down on him.

Slowly, he sat down before rearranging his hold on Moreno so she was resting against his chest. He was completely drained out but could not afford to fall asleep. They were still deep in enemy territory but the thought of facing Federation soldiers with nothing but his Berretta M9A1 did not instil as much fear as it would have once did. Compare to what they went through in that house, nothing could come close in terror.

They had no provisions, no radio, nothing but at least they were out of that nightmare.  



	9. Chapter 9

### Chapter Eight : The Knell Of Retribution

  


  
Fuck but her head hurt something fierce! Actually, her entire body felt like it had been used as a paddle ball for a giant. Had she crashed yet another bird? How many times now had she done so and walked to do it again? Damn but Ajax would have busted a gut in laughter. Would _have_ …?! Wait, Ajax was dead. Rorke had killed him!

Sonia’s mind felt scrambled as if something had cracked open her skull and gave her brain a good stir. She tried to put some order to her thoughts. She and Hesh, Elias’ older son, had borrowed a chopper so she could find Sosa and beat the information of Rorke’s whereabouts from him but they had been caught in a storm and crashed in the middle of Cuba’s swamp. They had sought refuge in a house… The house!

“FUCK!” she shouted, her eyes snapping open as she tried to get up but something impeded her movements.

“I’d love to but I was thinking of a more fitting place than under some trees on a muddied ground. Still, it stopped raining so I’m game if you are,” Hesh chuckled, his face visible in the lightening sky, his amused smile making him look almost boyish.

“Wait. We’re out of the house? How?!”

She looked around and, indeed, the house was nowhere to be seen, only mud, some grass and swamp, blessedly swamp!

“Don’t you remember? You chucked a damn grenade down the basement. I guess the house was so outraged you did that, that all the doors slammed wide open in shock. I grabbed you and hightailed it out of there so fast, I probably broke the sound barrier,” he explained. “Riley’s the one who brought us here.”

Sonia was relieved to hear the soft woof. They had all made it out. But, as confirmed by looking at the ground near the man, they were the only thing that had made it out. Her bag with the so important radio had not followed. They were stranded, in Federation territory without any means of communicating with the base.

Still, they were out of that house of horror. It could have been worst!

“Why?”

“Why what?” she asked back not knowing as to what Hesh was referring to.

“Why didn’t you fall for the house’s trick? I did when it pretended Logan was there and that, despite knowing how completely impossible it was. I still fell for it. It probably would have taken me if you had not stopped me.”

Sonia briefly closed her eyes, pushing the pain deep down.

“The house, or whatever the fuck was at the core of it, made a mistake,” she said forcing her voice to remain neutral. “Ajax never called me by my first name. Never. He always called me Wrecker for, as you know, my propensity in crashing helicopters deliberately." She stopped and pondered for a moment. Hesh already knew things none but Merrick knew. “Though once, he said that I was a wrecker because I had the power to wreck his marriage and he wouldn’t mind if I did,” she finally confessed, Hesh letting out a soft curse at that.

“That was a bastard thing to tell you! How— I mean, how did you react?”

“The only fucked up way I could,” she snorted. “By jumping in Thomas’ bed.” She tilted her head up to look at him. “I did say my relationship with him was complicated. Fuck, pretty much anything about me is fucked up. Any sane person would run away from me.”

“Hey, you’re not going to scare me that easily,” he told her, his voice getting husky. “Remember, I’ve survive a house of horror, darling, so there’s nothing you can dish out that’ll make me run away.”

“Well, that’s good to know,” she whispered, her hands travelling up his chest and behind his neck. She could feel him grow hard under her ass.

“Know what I’ve just realised? The house can’t stop me this time,” he growled, his head bending down towards her.

Her lips tingled from the nearness of his, her heart beating a steady drum. A much too steady drum! An helicopter was bearing down on them and though it could not yet be seen over the horizon, the steady beat of its rotors could be heard echoing through the swamp.

“You’ve _got_ to be kidding me!” Hesh hissed before gently settling her on the ground so he could get up, his Beretta in hand.

“Wait! I don’t think it’s Federation,” she told him, coming to stand beside him, her head tilted so she could hear better. “No, it’s not Federation! It’s a Blackhawk!”

“How—?!” He was looking at her in shock.

“I know my birds.”

“So they did receive the distress signal? Took their sweet time, I guess.”

“I don’t think they did but, knowing the Ghosts as I know them, the minute they realised they couldn’t ping our chopper anymore, they went on the hunt.”

Sonia stepped from under the meagre cover of the trees and proudly stood out in the open. There, on the horizon, the early morning sun glinting off its dark fuselage was the most beautiful sight she had ever seen, the U.S. Blackhawk. She knew the moment the pilot saw her so she stepped back towards the tree to give the chopper enough space to land, Hesh standing beside her.

The helicopter was barely on the ground that Merrick burst from the cockpit. She could feel his anger preceding him.

“I’m going to fucking kill you for scar—!” he raged mere moments before her fist connected with his face.

“Oh shove it, Thomas! I am not in the mood right now!” she barked. “Thanks for the rescue, by the way.”  
  
When Moreno had said that her relationship with the Ghosts Field Commander was complicated, it seemed she had not lied. Actually, as David recalled, the first time he had seen her, she had also punched the man. Come to think of it, she had punched him also but for a different reason. He had been acting like an asshole and had said things he should never had said. There were huggers and then there were punchers, he guessed. Just his luck the woman he had the hots for fell in the second category.>/p>

“I would cut Thomas some slack, Sonia. When we saw the wreckage, we assumed the worst,” his father said walking towards them. He was fully geared in his Ghost’s uniform, his skull mask firmly down. He was not alone, both Keegan and Logan taking guarding positions. “In fact, he’s the one who insisted we fully sweep sweep the area. Not easy to navigate the swamps from the air.”

“Not easy on foot either,” David snorted.

“You’re ok, son?”

“Yeah, I’m fine, dad. Just a bump on the head, nothing more. No symptoms of a concussion. Sonia—” Merrick shot him a warning look. “I mean Moreno’s the more injured out of the two of us,” he quickly corrected. He would need to have a talk with the man. He was not about to stand down where Moreno was concerned. He would ask her out. He could only hope he survived long enough to do so.

“I’m fine. Just a scratch,” this one said clacking her tongue in annoyance. “I swear, Thomas! You try to have a look at it and I’ll rip your balls off!”

“Well, now that we’ve found you, we should be on our way. We haven’t seen any enemy so far but I don’t want to risk being discovered,” his father said, his voice brooding no arguments. “We will discuss both of your actions back on the base after you’ve been checked by the medics. Though I’m afraid you won’t have much downtime to recuperate.”

“You know where Rorke is,” Moreno slowly said.

“I’ll brief the both of you when we’re are back at the base.” That was clearly the end of the conversation, his father already going back to the helicopter. Truth to tell, David was eager to leave this accursed place and try his best to forget what they had experienced.

“Thomas, kindly get the fuck away from my cockpit! David, you’re in front with me,” he heard Moreno say and though it seemed Merrick was going to argue, the man nevertheless complied and went to join the others in the back of the helicopter, Riley happily following this one.

He got into the copilot seat and watched as Moreno went through the motions of checking the monitors before lift up. She truly was in her environment in a cockpit.

“Hey, Wrecker!” he heard someone say over the comm. He was still not used to Keegan’s voice since the man almost never spoke. “Try not to crash.”

“Hey, Keegs? Bite me!” Laughter was the only reply to Moreno’s quip though it was short-lived.

“That’s not the way to the base,” he heard Merrick growl.

Indeed, the man was right. They were veering off course.

“Sonia? What are you doing?” he heard his father enquire but she remained silent, a look of determination on her face. David felt dread. Surely she was not going where he thought she was. There was no way she would know the way since he had been stumbling in the dark. Nevertheless, no matter how illogical it was, he knew where they were instant before the house came into view.

The helicopter hovered in the air and though the house was several feet away, he could swear he felt its malevolence all the way to where he was sitting as if it could somehow pluck him from the helicopter and forcibly drag him back inside, back into the nightmare.

“Hey, David?” Moreno said forcing him to to turn his gaze away from the house. “Don’t think I’ll be the only one waking up in the middle of the night to change diapers.”

Her hand went to the back of his head before he could react, her lips claiming his, her tongue delving inside his mouth. The kiss lasted but for a brief moment and yet was enough to shake him hard. He would go through hell and back for this badass of a woman!

“Shall we?” she asked looking down at her hand resting on the piloting stick, her thumb lifting the red lever and hovering over the button underneath.

“Fuck yeah!” he replied putting his own hand over hers.

“Going hot!” she warned though did not give the others time to react.

They pressed down on the button and watched as the rocket she had armed flew, its aim deadly.

David held his breath, his gaze riveted upon the house. He needed to see its destruction, needed to see it being annihilated if only so he could be able to sleep at night.

Their hands tightly clasped, they watched it blow up, the fragments of woods exploding outward. The shock wave of the blast made the helicopter shake but Moreno adroitly stabilised it. She kept it hovering until the debris dispersed. Nothing remained except a small crater. The house was gone and, hopefully, so was whatever evilness that had lurked at its heart.

“Sorry about that guys, just a good old dose of ‘don’t fuck with this bitch’. Setting coordinates for Key West.”

It was over. It was finally over though they still had a war to wage but the Federation was an evil David knew how to deal with, one he could fight back. Nothing truly scared him now, not even the thought of facing Rorke.

No, they had faced hell and had been able to escape its clutches. Nothing would ever come close to that.  



	10. Chapter 10

### Epilogue : It Was Just The Beginning

  


_The Iwokrama Forest, Guyana, South America_

_June 26th 2027, 1900 GYT_  
  
The storm had come out of nowhere and had taken them all by surprise. Before they knew it, their camp had been washed away leaving them all cold, wet and miserable. They had to find somewhere to hole up until rescue could arrive. Though the Federation had been ahead in the war, recent events had turned the tide against them. Now, they were scrambling to keep their forces from crumbling under the incessant attacks of the U.S.

The soldiers traipsed tiredly through the forest. Night was fast falling and they would have to find a place to stop but, with almost no supplies and no way to make a camp, their outlook was becoming grim. That is until, a shout came from the soldiers in the front. There was something up ahead.

Indeed, in the distance, a house could be seen in the dying light. Old, decrepit, and seemingly abandoned, the perfect place to set up camp.

The soldiers almost ran so relieved they were to have found somewhere safe from the raging storm. They never thought to wonder why it seemed out of place, its architecture not one used in this part of the world, nor why, despite the dust covering everything, it was fully supplied. No, they were just glad to have somewhere dry.

That is until the front door slammed shut behind them while the basement one slowly creaked open. Something at the bottom scurried up the stairs.

This time, the house would not be denied...  
  


**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This was my first foray into the "horror" genre. Hopefully, it did not suck too abysmally.
> 
> Also, I realise that there is much about the whole Merrick/Sonia/Ajax love triangle. The thing is that there is a prequel planned that will explain how Sonia came to be with the Ghosts, about her love for Ajax and Merrick. Hopefully, it'll be in the near future... *Can hear Jane laughing at that*


End file.
